Allison Kirkby, the chief executive of BT, has stated that telecoms operators in the UK pay up to ten times more in 'government-inflicted costs' than their counterparts in comparable European countries. Speaking at the Connected Britain conference in London, Kirkby highlighted that these costs include business rates, energy levies, and regulatory compliance expenses.
Kirkby warned that the industry has already reached its peak tolerance for such costs and expressed concerns about the upcoming November budget, describing it as potentially 'very difficult' for Chancellor Rachel Reeves. She noted that BT alone saw an additional £100 million in costs from last year's budget due to increased employer national insurance contributions and a higher minimum wage.
The BT chief also called for planning reforms to facilitate large-scale infrastructure projects. BT is investing approximately £15 billion in rolling out 5G and full-fibre networks across the UK through its Openreach subsidiary. Kirkby, who previously led Swedish telecoms firm Telia, joined BT's board in 2019 and became CEO in early 2023.
Kirkby joins a growing list of business leaders pressuring the government ahead of the budget. Earlier this week, Eli Lilly CEO Dave Ricks described the UK as 'probably the worst country in Europe' for drug prices, while Barclays CEO CS Venkatakrishnan urged limits on public sector pay rises and warned against further tax increases on banks.
