BT has acquired TalkTalk's broadband and wholesale businesses out of administration, keeping 2.5 million customers connected. It also leaves one company owning BT, EE, Plusnet, TalkTalk and Openreach. Comments to the competition regulator closed on 9 October; it reports to the Culture Secretary by 19 October.
On 5 October 2026, BT acquired TalkTalk Telecommunications and its wholesale arm, PlatformX, out of administration, at an estimated cost of around £400m. BT says the deal protects 1.5 million retail and 1 million wholesale customers, including vulnerable households and connections used by health and emergency services, and calls it "the only viable option to keep millions of customers connected and supported."
A rescue is better than a collapse. But look at what it leaves. BT already owns BT, EE and Plusnet, as well as Openreach, the network most other providers rent their lines from. TalkTalk has long sold itself on price. Folding it into the largest group in the market removes one of the cheaper alternatives for households watching every pound — the people this campaign exists for.
The UK Government has intervened. The Culture Secretary issued a public interest intervention notice the same day, citing among its grounds the "supply to customers who are or may be vulnerable." The Competition and Markets Authority must report by 19 October. BT says the two companies will operate separately and continue to compete until the review concludes.
The CMA invited comments from any interested party until Friday 9 October. WIRES has sent a submission asking that any approval protects low-cost tariffs, makes sure TalkTalk customers on qualifying benefits are offered a social tariff, and rules out forced price rises for vulnerable households.
The Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme, worth up to £5,000 towards a faster connection, closes to new applications on 20 November 2026. In Aberdeenshire alone, 2,089 premises are still eligible and have not used it.
WIRES has sent its submission to the Competition and Markets Authority's inquiry into BT's purchase of TalkTalk, asking that any approval protects prices, guarantees access to a social tariff and recognises the greater effect in rural Scotland. The full text is here. Comments closed on 9 October; the CMA reports by 19 October.
We read the published digital strategies of Scotland's 32 councils. Of the 24 we could verify, only Glasgow has a standalone strategy on digital exclusion. In 22, it is a theme inside a plan about the council's own services. Eight we couldn't confirm.
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