Ex-BT chief says fibre broadband investment wasn't a risk

Former BT Chief Executive Lord Livingston has insisted it was never a risk for the telecoms giant to invest billions of pounds in fibre optic broadband.

Under its commercial rollout programme, the company is spending £2.5 billion on bringing the technology within reach of two-thirds of UK homes and businesses.

More than 17 million properties have been passed by the project so far, with this figure set to rise to 19 million when the deployment is completed by the end of spring 2014 - at least a year and a half ahead of the original deadline.

Speaking to the Telegraph, Mr Livingston - who left his post at BT to take up a new position as Minister for Trade and Investment - said he always stressed to investors that the sum it was spending on fibre broadband was a sensible amount.

"It is a lot of money, but we'll generate cash flows irrespective of that and we'll pay for it out of transformation and efficiency," he explained.