Britain’s Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has issued a public interest intervention notice regarding the proposed acquisition of Telegraph Media Group by Daily Mail owner Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT), the government announced on Thursday.
Nandy’s decision requires regulators to examine the deal for potential impacts on media plurality and competition before it can proceed. The intervention notice formalises scrutiny of the £500 million ($682 million) transaction, which would bring the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph titles into the same corporate group as the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, Metro and i Paper.
Under the process, the media regulator Ofcom and the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) must assess whether the acquisition raises concerns about concentration of media ownership and competitive harm. Both regulators are set to report back to the culture secretary by June 10.
DMGT has previously stated its intention to maintain editorial independence for the Telegraph titles if the deal is approved. Regulatory reviews under public interest rules can delay or block transactions that are deemed contrary to wider social or economic concerns.