Capita will not stop until civil service failures fixed, boss tells MPs

The boss of Capita said the company will “not stop” until its failures have been fixed after facing fierce criticism from MPs.

It came two days after the outsourcing giant first apologised for a raft of contract failures linked to its handling of civil service pensions.

On Wednesday, MPs on Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee questioned whether the firm sees the Government as a “cash cow to be milked to the point of dropping from exhaustion”.

The outsourcing giant reiterated its apologies for delays in administering the 1.7 million-member pension scheme, which has left thousands of civil servants waiting for payments and retirement quotes

Adolfo Hernandez, chief executive of Capita, said the group still sees the Government as a partner and takes its work for the state “extremely seriously”.

Ministers have said they could bring back the operation of Capita’s contract into Government management.

The Cabinet Office said there were more than 6,700 quotations for past retirement dates and 4,100 bereavement cases outstanding.

Mr Hernandez said: “I would love to have the opportunity to deeply, first and foremost, apologise.

“I would like to apologise for all the members who have been receiving a very poor service at a very difficult and challenging time in their lives.

“They are citizens that have worked for the country for many years in a variety of very critical positions.

“For everything we are responsible for, they have my biggest apologies and I assure you will not stop until that is fixed.”

The civil service pension contract is one of at least 80 Government contracts with Capita.

Earlier this week, Cabinet Office minister and Paymaster General Nick Thomas-Symonds pledged to recover “every single penny” from Capita

It came after the Government was to parachute in a 140-strong team of civil servants to help clear the backlog of work.