BT updates on efficiency drive

British Telecom today said it had paid out £182m (€261m) on its restructuring plans after 2,000 people left the business.

The costs come as part of a £450m (€645.39m) overhaul of the group, which has seen BT shed management jobs through voluntary redundancies since the plans were announced in May.

Although BT has taken on frontline staff elsewhere in the group, further efficiencies are expected as the plans gather pace. BT currently has 107,000 staff.

Chief executive Ben Verwaayen said: "We are achieving significant transformation of our business which will deliver further efficiencies alongside faster, better, smarter services for our customers."

The announcement came as BT posted underlying earnings of £1.45bn (€2bn) for the quarter to September 30, in line with expectations.

BT cemented its position as UK's leading broadband provider today after becoming the first company to boast more than four million customers.

The group now has 4.1 million customers after net additions of 178,000 in the quarter, putting it ahead of major rivals such as Virgin Media and Carphone Warehouse.

Overall broadband revenues at BT were 12% higher at £543m (€778.8m), while net average revenues per customer household - calculated on a rolling 12-month basis - were up by £5 (€7.17) to £271 (€388.67), reflecting customers taking on more services from the group.