Statement: BT regulatory financial reporting

Phones and broadband Telecoms infrastructure Consultations and statements

Published: 4 December 2018

Consultation closes: 18 January 2019

Status: Closed (statement published)

Statement published 20 March 2019, further statement published 12 July 2019

Each year BT prepares a set of Regulatory Financial Statements (RFS), which include published statements and information that is submitted to Ofcom privately. Ofcom has completed a review of BT’s obligations for its RFS covering all regulated markets.

Our decisions are set out in two statements:

July 2019 statement: On 28 June 2019, Ofcom published its decisions in its review of physical infrastructure and business connectivity services. This document set out detailed regulatory financial reporting requirements for these markets for 2019/20 and following.
March 2019 statement: This statement sets out detailed regulatory financial reporting requirements for the wholesale local access, narrowband and wholesale broadband access markets for 2018/19 and following.

What we have decided – in brief (July 2019 statement)

Regulatory accounting principles; transparency; audit of the RFS; Reconciliation Report; adjusted financial performance: we have decided to apply the obligations in the wholesale local access, narrowband and wholesale broadband access markets to the physical infrastructure and business connectivity markets.
Consistency with regulatory decisions: we have decided to update the requirements to reflect regulatory and commercial changes that impact regulatory financial reporting in the physical infrastructure and business connectivity markets.
Preparation, delivery, publication, form and content of the RFS: we have decided to introduce detailed reporting requirements for the physical infrastructure and business connectivity markets. This reporting reflects the regulatory remedies imposed in the respective markets.
Network components: we have updated the list of network components so they remain relevant and up-to-date following changes in the physical infrastructure and business connectivity markets.

Consistency with regulatory decisions: we have decided to update the requirements to reflect regulatory and commercial changes that impact regulatory financial reporting.
Audit of the RFS: we have removed the requirement for BT to obtain a Fairly Presents In Accordance with (FPIA) opinion on its RFS from its regulatory auditors. In future, BT will only be required to obtain an opinion that the RFS are Properly Prepared In Accordance with (PPIA) its Accounting Methodology Documents (AMD).
Reconciliation Report: we have decided to remove the requirement to publish certain schedules within the RFS which over time have led to some duplication of information and publication of information that is no longer necessary.
Preparation delivery, publication, form and content of the RFS: we have decided to reduce some reporting requirements and increase the prominence of Openreach reporting. We have also updated a number of schedules that BT publishes.
Network components: we have updated the list of network components to ensure they remain relevant and up-to-date.