UK - BT has warned it could sue the UK telecommunications regulator Ofcom if it refuses to allow it to use a rise in wholesale fees levied on rivals to help repair its pension deficit.
 
Communications watchdog Ofcom has ruled out changes to British Telecom's wholesale charging structure, despite the telecoms giant's £9bn scheme deficit.
 
The decision follows two consultations, one published in December last year that considered whether BT's pension shortfall justified a change in Ofcom's regulatory approach.
 
In a second consultation, Ofcom proposed that the current approach to the treatment of BT's pension costs be maintained.
 
Ofcom sets the prices that Openreach, BT's wholesale access division, can charge other communications providers to deliver services to consumers.
 
At present, it takes account of ongoing pension service costs, as reported in BT's statutory accounts, but excludes payments made by BT in respect of the pension fund deficit.
 
In March, BT's rivals - BSkyB, Cable & Wireless and Carphone Warehouse - attacked the telecoms giant, accusing it of seeking to charge customers to help plug the scheme's deficit.
 
At the time, Carphone Warehouse said a surcharge would be "morally unjust, economically damaging and legally unjustifiable".
 
BT declined to comment.
 

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