BT to pay £2bn to pension scheme

By Mark Fordham

BT has stated it will pay £2 billion into its pension fund in order to help cover the current deficit of the scheme.

The payment is part of a nine-year plan to bolster the plan which had an estimated deficit of £4.1 billion in June and it represents one of the biggest one-off payments yet made by a company into a pension fund.

Support for the scheme was dragged down by BT's performance and four years ago it had a deficit of £9 billion.

The firm is in a stronger position to add to this fund after reporting pre-tax profits for the three months to the end of December were £652 million, which is 48 per cent higher than a year earlier.

"This agreement, under which the company makes an immediate contribution to the scheme of almost half of the deficit, reflects BT's financial strength and re-affirms our commitment to the scheme," said chief executive Ian Livingston.