Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what the cost to the public purse is of the BT contract to operate the 999 emergency phone system.

We recognise the importance of 999 as an essential part of our public safety. The Government working in partnership with BT and the Emergency Authorities will be taking steps to strengthen the resilience of the Public Emergency Call Service, to ensure it meets the needs of the UK public.

The Government does not have a contract with BT to provide the Public Emergency Call Service, and does not pay BT to act as the 999 Call Handling Agent (CHA).

All Communication Providers (CPs) are required by the Communications Act (2003) to ensure the continuity of access to the Public Emergency Call Service, via the telephone numbers 999 and 112. These obligations are set out in the General Conditions of Entitlement and are regulated by Ofcom. All CPs pay BT to provide the service on their behalf, and this arrangement does not involve the Government.

Through their role as the independent regulator, Ofcom set BT an advisory target to answer 95% of calls within 5 seconds. While this is only an advisory target, Ofcom retains discretion to investigate, and take action against any CP for any possible breach of its General Conditions, which could include considering delays, errors, service quality and other relevant factors.

On 28 June 2023, Ofcom announced an investigation into the incident on 25 June 2023, and will seek to establish the facts surrounding the incident, and examine whether there are reasonable grounds to believe that BT has failed to comply with its regulatory obligations.

In addition, the Government will be completing a full Post-Incident Review to examine the resilience of the system and to identify any lessons that may be learnt from the incident.