MP ALAN Johnson has stepped into the row over a decision by the city council to award its new 300300 call centre contract to outsourcing giant Serco.
He has called on council leader Steve Brady to explain the authority's decision to opt for Serco ahead of Hull telecoms group KC, which has delivered the service for the past 14 years.
The move by the Hull West and Hessle MP comes after Serco faced new questions over its charges for operating tagging schemes.
Justice Secretary Chris Grayling announced an inquiry into the tagging contracts after an audit discovered G4S and Serco had overcharged taxpayers by up to £50m, billing them for offenders who were dead, back in custody or had left the country.
In a Commons statement, Mr Grayling said: "The House will share my astonishment that two of the Government's biggest suppliers would seek to charge in this way."
In a letter to the council leader, Mr Johnson raises his own concerns over Serco's track record by highlighting a recent public accounts committee inquiry which found the firm had falsified data on 252 occasions to misrepresent its performance under an out-of-hours care contract it held with a health trust in Cornwall.
He said: "I was extremely concerned to hear that the call centre contract has been transferred from a local company to a huge multi-national conglomerate.
"I do understand the imperative to ensure value for money in the procurement process, however this cannot mean that the council simply has to accept the cheapest option irrespective of the effects on quality or the wider impact on the city.
"There has been a lot of talk recently about the 'Hull pound' and you have been instrumental in trying to ensure that contract work and building developments around the city go to local businesses and employees in the Hull area.
"While staff transfer negotiations are necessary and a commitment will have been given to maintain the existing staff, the whole history of these kinds of contracts is that eventually staffing numbers are reduced and call centre work is moved elsewhere, often abroad.
"I assume Hull City Council have carried out sufficient due diligence and fully understand the integrity and culture of the company they plan to outsource their contact centre to.
"It's clear this is not yet a done deal. I hope the council can reflect on the ramifications of the provisional decision they have taken."
In a statement on the tagging issue, Serco Group's chief executive, Christopher Hyman, said: "Serco is a business led by our values and built on the strength of our reputation for integrity.
"These values lie at the heart of the many thousands of our people who are endeavouring to deliver the highest standard of service to our customers around the world. We are deeply concerned if we fall short of the standards expected of us."
A city council spokesman said: "It would be inappropriate for the council to comment."
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