• Privacy policy
  • T&C’s
  • About Us
    • FAQ
    • Meet the Team
  • Contact us
  • Guest Content
TLE ONLINE SHOP!
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Opinion
    • Elevenses
  • Business
  • Food
  • Travel
  • Property
  • JOBS
  • All
    • All Entertainment
    • Film
    • Sport
    • Tech/Auto
    • Lifestyle
      • Horoscopes
    • Lottery Results
      • Lotto
      • Thunderball
      • Set For Life
      • EuroMillions
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
SUPPORT THE LONDON ECONOMIC
NEWSLETTER
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Opinion
    • Elevenses
  • Business
  • Food
  • Travel
  • Property
  • JOBS
  • All
    • All Entertainment
    • Film
    • Sport
    • Tech/Auto
    • Lifestyle
      • Horoscopes
    • Lottery Results
      • Lotto
      • Thunderball
      • Set For Life
      • EuroMillions
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Serco profits spike thanks to bumper Test and Trace contract

The company said that around 17 per cent of its revenues for the half-year were from work supporting government in its response to Covid-19.

Henry Goodwin by Henry Goodwin
2021-08-05 09:59
in News
Credit;PA

Credit;PA

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmailWhatsapp

Outsourcing firm Serco has seen its profits spike after it was boosted by Covid-19 Test and Trace contracts and acquisition activity.

The London-listed firm said its operating profit increased by 31 per cent to £116 million for the six months to June.

The company, which was one of the suppliers involved in the UK’s Test and Trace programme, also said it will pay an interim dividend of 0.8p per share following the profit boost – the first payout to investors since 2014. 

It runs a quarter of testing sites across the UK, and provides call handlers for the NHS’s much-maligned contact-tracing programme.

Bumper pandemic year

Profitability has been boosted by its acquisitions of US firm Whitney, Bradley & Brown and facilities and cleaning firm Facilities First Australia.

Serco, which operates a raft of services including cleaning and air traffic control, said revenues jumped by 19 per cent to £2.17 billion for the past six months.

The company said that around 17 per cent of its revenues for the half-year were from work supporting government in its response to Covid-19.

In June, the group won a new contract worth up to £322 million to continue running coronavirus testing sites for another year in the UK.

Chief executive Rupert Soames said: “Serco has grown very rapidly in the past two years, made possible by the investment we have made since 2014 in transforming our culture, systems and processes, regaining the trust of our customers, and building a strong and experienced management team.

RelatedPosts

Instant coffee kept in security cases as price soars to £10.50 a jar

No 10 denies ‘cover-up’ as Covid inquiry struggles to get Boris Johnson messages

Natural England downgrades River Wye after wildlife decline

Deadline delayed for handing over Boris Johnson messages to Covid inquiry

“Over 60 per cent of our profits now come from outside the UK, which reflects the success we have had in developing our businesses around the world.

“We now employ 83,000 people, which is around 21,000 more than we did a year ago. Notwithstanding this rapid expansion, we have delivered an extremely strong operational performance.”

Shares in the company were 0.5 per cent lower after the markets opened in London on Thursday.

‘Outrageous’

Sir Keir Starmer criticised the firm’s decision to hand its investors millions in dividends as “outrageous” earlier this year.

The outsourcing giant announced in February that it would resume dividend payouts after a seven-year interval, after profits almost doubled in the first year of the pandemic. 

“Outrageous. Taxpayers’ money shouldn’t be given to Serco’s shareholders via dividends,” the Labour leader tweeted.

“The government should have placed test and trace in the hands of our NHS and local communities,” Starmer added.

Related: NHS no longer rated best among rich countries’ healthcare systems

Content Protection by DMCA.com
Tags: SercoTest and Trace

Since you are here

Since you are here, we wanted to ask for your help.

Journalism in Britain is under threat. The government is becoming increasingly authoritarian and our media is run by a handful of billionaires, most of whom reside overseas and all of them have strong political allegiances and financial motivations.

Our mission is to hold the powerful to account. It is vital that free media is allowed to exist to expose hypocrisy, corruption, wrongdoing and abuse of power. But we can't do it without you.

If you can afford to contribute a small donation to the site it will help us to continue our work in the best interests of the public. We only ask you to donate what you can afford, with an option to cancel your subscription at any point.

To donate or subscribe to The London Economic, click here.

The TLE shop is also now open, with all profits going to supporting our work.

The shop can be found here.

You can also SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER .

Subscribe to our Newsletter

View our  Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions

Trending on TLE

  • All
  • trending

Elevenses: The Thing About Wrexham’s Cinderella Story

Elevenses: Exposing the Tories’ Deepfake Illegal Immigration Bill

Elevenses: Rishi’s Finest Hour

More from TLE

Man, 39, stabbed to death in Brixton south London

Top 20 London bars & restaurants for a festive drink

PMQs Sept 16th – Rayner reins in Johnson and milks him dry

‘Pack your bongo and get out’: Australia orders deportation of Katie Hopkins

Restaurant Review: Zobler’s Deli & Diner at The Ned

Midwife was stunned after discovering she delivered her own student 19 years ago

Alex Scott owns Brexiter Lord who told her to talk properly on TV

Video – PM urged ‘patriotic best’ & go to pub now Govt minister blames it for rise in infections

Ukrainian journalists ruthlessly fired after standing up to tycoon

‘You lost get over it’ Trump supporters tell the other 7.3 billion people on the planet

About Us

TheLondonEconomic.com – Open, accessible and accountable news, sport, culture and lifestyle.

Read more

Contact

Editorial enquiries, please contact: [email protected]

Commercial enquiries, please contact: [email protected]

Address

The London Economic Newspaper Limited t/a TLE
Company number 09221879
International House,
24 Holborn Viaduct,
London EC1A 2BN,
United Kingdom

SUPPORT

We do not charge or put articles behind a paywall. If you can, please show your appreciation for our free content by donating whatever you think is fair to help keep TLE growing and support real, independent, investigative journalism.

DONATE & SUPPORT

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.




No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Food
  • Travel
  • JOBS
  • More…
    • Elevenses
    • Opinion
    • Property
    • Tech & Auto
  • About Us
    • Meet the Team
    • Privacy policy
  • Contact us

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.