BT hit with £4.5m penalties for NHS broadband

The NHS IT programme is in talks with supplier BT in order to seek penalties of £4.5m for delays to the N3 broadband programme covering the health service, it was confirmed on Wednesday.

The talks represent the second attempt to impose penalties on the supplier - earlier this summer the National Programme for IT (NPfIT) charged BT £800,000 for initial delays to the broadband scheme.

A NPfIT spokesperson told Government Computing News that the latest round of penalties includes the original sum. It also covers costs "incurred by the NHS for more prolonged use of the [existing] NHS Net system", said the spokesperson.

In June 2004 it emerged that BT had missed two out of 56 targets stipulated in the N3 programme. In response to questions, NPfIT would give no further details on any further targets that have been missed.

The spokesperson said: "The first phase of implementation for N3 started in April 2004 and approximately 6,000 sites will migrate in the first year. The programme to link NHS sites in England to the N3 network will connect approximately 18,000 sites in total over a period of three years, lasting until April 2007."

NPfIT is also behind on another key programme, the Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS). In "guidance" to PACS sub-contractors, NPfIT had stated it aimed to have 25 per cent of the programme completed by the end of March 2005. This aim will now not be met due to delays in contract negotiations, the spokesperson said.

"At the time of the ministerial announcement of PACS in May 2004 we stated that the intention was to have 80 per cent PACS coverage by summer of 2006 and the remaining 20 per cent to be concluded by summer 2007 and that remains the target."

"In the spring of this year a guidance document was issued to the LSPs during PACS re-pricing discussions and the document indicated the intent to have 25 per cent PACS coverage by the end of the 2004-05 financial year."

"This was not a formal commitment or target but was given as guidance to help the LSPs and their potential sub-contractors to plan their resourcing requirements. Contract discussions on PACS have taken longer than anticipated and there will not be 25 per cent PACS coverage by end of the 2004-05 financial year."

On a more positive note for BT, the company has announced a deal to provide electronic patient records (EPR) for London in its role as local service provider for the region under NPfIT. It has signed a six-and-a-half year, £108m contract with Texas-based Perot Systems Corporation to deliver the EPR system.