BT '˜worth £1.12bn to Yorkshire's economy'

The report, by Regeneris Consulting, highlights the impact of BT’s activities including its takeover of EE, which has strengthened the communications company’s position as one of the region’s leading employers.

It revealed BT supported around 14,300 jobs in Yorkshire and the Humber through direct employment, spending with contractors and suppliers and the spending of employees.

The report has been welcomed by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI).

Beckie Hart, CBI director for Yorkshire and the Humber, said: “This latest research demonstrates the extent to which BT plays a key role in our local communities. There is not a businessperson or family in this region who – directly or indirectly – is not affected by BT’s activities as a supplier of essential services, such as superfast broadband, major employer, investor or purchaser. In a competitive world, in which trade and relationships increasingly transcend regional and national boundaries, rapid and effective communications are ever more vital.”

In employment terms, BT and EE’s impact in the 2015-16 financial year was larger than the region’s textile manufacturing sector. Nearly 6,600 people across Yorkshire and the Humber are directly employed by BT and its EE business – equivalent to one in eight employees working in the region’s IT sector. Around £290 million was spent with suppliers in the region.

Tom Keeney, BT’s regional director for Yorkshire and the Humber, said: “Few organisations have a more positive and direct impact on the local economy and the region’s communities than BT.

“As well as providing the means for families, homeworkers, companies and other organisations to communicate and do business in new and exciting ways, BT is helping to support other firms and suppliers in the region with the company’s procurement and overall expenditure and the spending of its employees.”