Henry Ford said that "a business that makes nothing but money is a poor kind of a business". Besides, research has shown that the decision to purchase from one company rather than another is not a decision about price alone.

Customers and investors are drawn to particular companies by their reputations. Last year, BT was a European Quality Awards prizewinner - the largest company ever to have reached the finals. The judging panel was particularly impressed by BT's "impact on society" and congratulated us on our efforts to meet the needs of the local, national and international communities.

BT is the sole sponsor of the Comic Relief site on the Internet - the UK's first-ever site which attempts to raise funds for the voluntary sector over the Internet. BT's work with the Samaritans not only includes a £1 million sponsorship deal, but also the sharing of expertise to create a single contact number for the organisation.

As part of our continued efforts to train people for jobs and help regenerate the local economy, we have supported some notable projects, such as that to redevelop the Chavasse Park area in Liverpool. BT is contributing £300,000 towards this major project which will accommodate leading-edge, communication-based companies and an interactive multimedia education/leisure complex expected to create around 2,000 jobs.