Council renews BT joint venture
LIVERPOOL City Council has renewed terms for its joint venture with BT which has seen it gain a £9m discount in charges levied plus agreed investments by the telecoms giant of more than £35m.
The £70m a year deal will see the joint venture company Liverpool Direct continuing to run the council’s IT service, contact centre, one stop shops, revenue and benefits service and its HR and payroll functions for another five years.
However, council leader Cllr Joe Anderson, who had been critical of the deal in opposition, said: “This is a contract that was not of our making, and one of the first things I did when I became Leader was review it and ask BT to come forward with new proposals to rebalance it and make it more of a genuine partnership.
“I was pleased with their positive response, and am satisfied that the proposed deal will see us get a better deal for council tax payers.
“This is not just about getting cash savings and improving services, but also creating additional opportunities which will benefit the city at a time when our budget is under extreme pressure due to severe spending cuts from central government.
“I am therefore pleased that the deal addresses our priorities as an administration, including the creation of hundreds of apprenticeships and funding for social care, housing and community projects which will genuinely make a difference to the lives of many in our city.”
The new deal involves BT contributing £1m towards a new apprenticeship fund, generating up to 65 jobs a year. These will offer two or three-year contracts to local residents or graduates.
Some £12m will go into a fund to support social care, social housing and community development and £17.5m will be invested in ICT improvement projects including replacement computers, software upgrades and website improvements. BT has also agreed not to pursue a potential £56m claim for breach of contract and to waive costs associated with it.
The council said that governance of the partnership would also be strengthened in its favour, with its shareholding in the venture increasing from 19.9% to 40% and the number of council directors on its board tripling from one to three. New targets will also be set for council tax collection rates and for contact centre calls being addressed.
“This marks a fresh start for our relationship with BT, and I am committed to making sure the whole council is able to continue scrutinising the partnership to make sure it delivers for Liverpool,” said Anderson.
The joint venture contract is now due to end on 31 March 2017.
