Councils ring up £2m bill for mobiles

Almost £2 million was spent on mobile phones for staff at councils across the Midlands last year, it was revealed today.

Around 13,350 workers at authorities in Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Sandwell, Dudley, Walsall, Lichfield, Cannock and Staffordshire are provided with handsets for work.

Eight councils paid out a total of £1,874,707 on line rental and calls in 2008/09, figures released under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act showed. The spending has come under fire from the West Midlands Taxpayers' Alliance.

Taxpayers in Birmingham faced the largest bill with the authority spending £626,652 in 2008/09. Staffordshire County Council paid £480,000 in 2009, Dudley Council spent £280,000, while in Walsall the bill was £241,100.

Sandwell Council spent £230,851, Lichfield Council £18,050, South Staffordshire Council £9,294 and Cannock's bill was £6,792. Wolverhampton Council was unable to provide figures.

There are 6,850 phones used by workers in Birmingham, 4,400 at Staffordshire County Council, 3,286 in Dudley, 1,400 in Wolverhampton, 1, 258 in Walsall, 299 in Cannock, 240 in Lichfield, and 182 in South Staffordshire.

Dudley Council spokesman Phil Parker said: "Mobile phones are used by staff where it will help achieve more efficient and effective working. The authority has one government sponsored contract for all mobile handsets which helps keep the costs down."

Lichfield Council's cabinet member for organisational development, Councillor Colin Greatorex, said: "We rely on mobile phones to maintain contact with officers working away from the office. It also allows us to respond to any issues that may happen outside normal working hours. This immediate access to our employees means we can offer a faster and more effective service to our customers."

West Midlands Taxpayers Alliance spokeswoman Fiona McEvoy said: "A mobile phone should only be for staff who are regularly or permanently away from the office environment, and even then there is no need for it to be a flashy, expensive model.

"This is a very hefty bill for taxpayers and suggests our councils need to take a another look at who needs a mobile as a priority.