'Having a laugh' with bidder for £700m contract

THE company behind the "catastrophic" civil service pension scheme is the preferred bidder for a new £700 million contract, the Commons has heard.

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A Labour MP accused the Government of "having a laugh" as she raised concerns about outsourcing firm Capita.

Lorraine Beavers was among a group of MPs from across the House to criticise the company for leaving their constituents without income, after failing to pay them when it took over managing the civil service pensions in December.

Addressing the Commons on Thursday, she said: "Last week, I heard that the Government had made Capita the preferred bidder for a £700 million contract for shared services across Government departments.

"Are they having a laugh?