UK minister 'minded' to intervene over Telegraph newspaper sale

UK culture minister Lisa Nandy said on Tuesday she was “minded” to intervene in Daily Mail owner DMGT’s proposed 500-million-pound ($673 million) takeover of the Telegraph newspaper, a move that would trigger regulatory scrutiny.

The Telegraph has been in limbo since 2023, when RedBird IMI – a joint venture between US.-based RedBird Capital and Abu Dhabi’s International Media Investments – attempted to buy it. That deal stalled after UK introduced limits on foreign ownership of newspapers.

Nandy said she was “minded to intervene on the following public interest grounds”, citing the need for both a plurality of views and sufficient plurality of those with control.

The minister added that she was not minded to intervene under the separate Foreign State Influence regime, but said she would act if new information emerged pointing to foreign-state involvement.

“It is important to note that I have not taken a final decision on intervention at this stage,” Nandy said in a statement, adding that her “minded to” letter gives the parties until January 26 to respond before she makes a final decision.

If Nandy issues an Intervention Notice, the media regulator Ofcom would assess the public-interest issues, while the Competition and Markets Authority would report on whether the deal creates a relevant merger and what it could mean for competition.