BT 'still committed to graduates' - graduate jobs

BT says it is still committed to graduate recruitment, despite suspending its graduate scheme.

The firm's chairman Sir Michael Rake wrote a letter to the Financial Times, saying: "I am a passionate believer in the importance of education and training.

"BT will continue to recruit and nurture bright young people, which is the right thing to do for the company and for the countries in which we operate."

Previous reports had blamed the suspension of the scheme on pressure on staff numbers during the recession.

However Rake said: "We are proud to be a major employer in the UK and around the world. In the past five years we have recruited around a thousand young graduates and post-graduates and well over a thousand apprentices.

"The flurry of press stories has been sparked by news that we are not planning to take part in this year's university milk round. That's because we will reduce the number of graduates we take on next year (2010), and can meet our needs outside this annual recruitment fair. I am certain we will be accelerating our graduate recruitment again before long."