Rotherham Council silent over £2m BT settlement leak

ROTHERHAM Borough Council is remaining tightlipped about how much has cost to end an IT contract with BT three years early.

Council chiefs say they won't reveal the settlement figure and have refused to comment on claims from a source close to the Labour Party that the bill was £2m.

A council spokesman said: “We have agreed with BT an appropriate sum, which reflects the costs that the council would have incurred over the original contract period.

“Clearly this is a matter of commercial sensitivity.”

The RBT partnership was formed in 2003 in a bid to improve customer services, provide significant investment, generate savings and deliver new technology systems at the council.

The spokesman added: “The partnership has delivered a range of significant benefits, including savings worth in excess of £50 million.

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“It is a mark of its success that the partnership achieved its objectives earlier than envisaged.”

But Tory councillor John Turner has accused the council of saying "to hell with democracy" over the settlement fee.

“We are elected to monitor and measure council processes. We, along with the public that elects us, absolutely have a right to know," he said.

Cllr ahangir Akhtar, deputy leader of the council, said:: “This was a ground-breaking partnership that fulfilled the needs of both parties at that time.

“Our link with BT has allowed us to carry out major improvements in our services for the benefit of local people.

“But circumstances change and in this current climate it is imperative that every authority has the freedom to seek alternative ways of delivering its services with a variety of partners.

“Because of that, Rotherham and BT have come to a fair and amicable agreement to complete the partnership early.”

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