BT Group Added £24 Billion in GVA to the UK Economy Last Year

A new report from consultancy firm Hatch, which was commissioned by the BT Group, has estimated that the telecoms and broadband giant generated a £24bn contribution to the UK economy (expressed as GVA – Gross Value Added) during the 2019/20 financial year and supports 300,000 full-time jobs (directly and via suppliers etc.).

BT also noted that the One Hundred Group 2019 Total Tax Contribution Survey had ranked them as the 6th highest contributor in the UK, although the impact of this tax contribution has not been assessed in their report. However, their position has changed from 2017/18, when they paid £1.1bn in taxes and were the 5th highest tax contributor.

Elsewhere, the Group (including BT, Openreach, EE and Plusnet) spent nearly £10.1bn with suppliers based around the UK last year, including helping to maintain around 35,000 vehicles, with an ambition to transition up to 28,000 to electric vehicles by 2030.

Just to compare all this with the results from 2017/18, which is the last such report that we covered. BT has added 300 direct employees, but the number of FTE contractor employees working for them has fallen from 12,300 in 2017/18 to 10,600 now. On the other hand, their spend with suppliers has jumped from £9.2bn to £10.1bn over the same period and their total GVA impact has also increased from £22.8bn to £24bn.

Jane Wood, BT Group Director of Nations and Regions, said:

“I’m immensely proud of the contribution our colleagues make in supporting the UK economy. At an important time for our country, our spending on people, networks and suppliers, provides a vital economic boost for the UK. The wider impact of that spending helps to sustain communities and small businesses right across the UK.

In the past year, having good connectivity has become more important than ever as we’ve all had to work, learn, and spend more leisure time online. Despite these challenges, our dedicated and determined colleagues have ensured EE’s 5G network has been extended to cover 125 towns and cities, built out Openreach’s full-fibre networks to reach 4.1 million premises and EE’s 4G network now reaches 85 per cent of the UK. I know these significant investments will help to underpin the country’s economic recovery post-Covid.”

You can read the full report here (PDF).