UK Probe of Abu Dhabi-Backed Telegraph Bid Extends Takeover Saga

Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer orders probe into proposed deal
Media and competition watchdogs to investigate UAE-linked bid

Copies of The Daily Telegraph newspaper on a newsstand in a shop in London, UK, on Thursday, June 8, 2023. The Telegraph newspapers and Spectator magazine could be sold, after a unit of Lloyds Banking Group Plc appointed receivers to a holding company and removed Barclay family members as directors of the media companies.Photographer: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg

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By Thomas Seal and Ellen Milligan

November 30, 2023 at 5:17 PM UTC

Updated on

December 1, 2023 at 11:12 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

The UK has ordered an investigation into the proposed acquisition of the Telegraph newspaper by a vehicle backed by Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the latest twist in a battle to control the famed conservative media brand.

Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer has decided to issue a Public Interest Intervention Notice regarding a deal which would see media investment venture RedBird IMI take control of the Telegraph, citing the need to ensure “the accurate presentation of news and free expression of opinion in newspapers.”