British Gas creating 2,600 jobs

British Gas is to create 2,600 new jobs by 2012 to lead the roll-out of smart meter technology.

Smart meters allow suppliers to record customers' gas and electricity use at a distance and let consumers see how much energy they are using.

The government has previously said that it wants all homes in Britain to be fitted with smart meters by 2020.

British Gas said 1,700 jobs would be new, while 900 would be people coming from other metering organisations.

Smart meters would remove the need to have people going round homes checking meters.

It would also mean an end to estimated bills, which would reduce the need for call centre staff to deal with complaints about them.

British Gas said it would have 2,100 smart energy experts in the field who would install the new meters, as well as advising consumers how to make the best use of them.

The rest of the jobs created will be 400 support staff and 130 managerial positions.