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BT could take NHS Scotland to court over £110m contract

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By Ishbel Macleod, PR and social media consultant

January 15, 2014 | 2 min read

BT could take NHS Scotland to court following a tendering process the communications giant described as ‘flawed’, which led to the NHS ending its contract with BT.

NHS Scotland handed the six year, £110m contract for the provision of computer network services to a different company.

NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) - which led the negotiations - has estimated the new deal will save the public purse around £300,000 a month.

A spokesman for NSS told The Herald: "By creating an IT platform that is open to all the Scottish public sector, the Scottish Wide Area Network will create savings that can be reinvested in essential public services.

"It will create common standards and easier integration between public sector bodies. The contract is worth approximately £110m initially, with the potential to rise as more public bodies make use of it."

The communications group has asked for a rerun of the bidding process, or £20m in damages.

A BT spokesman said: "We were naturally disappointed by this decision, particularly since the existing N3 national communications network operating across the NHS in Scotland has delivered significant benefits over many years. We believe our proposal offered excellent value and minimal risk to Scottish taxpayers.

"We can confirm that proceedings have commenced with a view to the procurement being rerun and hope this matter will be resolved shortly. This is a highly unusual step but we believe we have strong grounds for this challenge, which we believe is in the public interest."

This follows a dispute between the Scottish Government and Newhaven last year, after the agency was left off the £100m marketing roster.

Newhaven – which has since been acquired by The Leith Agency – had ‘reluctantly’ planned to take the Scottish Government to court following the snub.

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