UK – The body which oversees the London police force has signed a pensions and payroll administration deal with LogicaCMG and Paymaster.

The Metropolitan Police Authority has selected the firms to provide payroll and pensions administration for the 46,000 police officers and staff of the Metropolitan Police Service.

The deal, worth around £31m over seven years, followed a “strong procurement competition,” a statement said.

The move means a loss for Capita Business Services, which had been the supplier since the late 1990s. Its contracts expire on March 31 2006.

According to the authority’s web site, it received eight bids for the tender. It said: “LogicaCMG proposes to provide all payroll and pensions services from a single location in central London, with a final decision on the exact location depending on the outcome of the staff consultation exercise during transition.”

"Across the private and public sectors, 2005 is the year in which organisations will focus more on the relationship they have with employees,” said Gary Austin, managing director for LogicaCMG Enterprise Services.

“Staff motivation and retention has never been higher on the agenda and HR outsourcing of this nature presents a powerful opportunity for organisations to reduce the administrative burden on HR personnel.”