Telegraph up for sale after takeover collapses

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The Daily and Sunday Telegraph newspapers are back up for sale after an Abu Dhabi-backed bid to take them over collapsed.

The ownership of the papers was set to be transferred to the Gulf-backed RedBird IMI consortium before the government intervened in January.

There were concerns about the papers being owned by a state-controlled business.

RedBird said it would halt the takeover and put the media firm up for sale.

“Regrettably, it is clear this approach is no longer feasible,” the investment firm said, adding it would now look to secure the “best value” for the titles, which include the Spectator magazine.

“We have held constructive conversations with the government about ensuring a smooth and orderly sale for both titles,” it said in a statement.

The Abu-Dhabi-backed deal for the Telegraph was largely funded by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan, the owner of Manchester City Football Club and vice-president and deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

But concerns were raised by MPs and some of the newspaper’s current and former journalists, and readers, that the title might fall under control of an authoritarian foreign state.

In January, the government intervened to scrutinise the deal and announced last month that foreign governments would be banned from owning UK newspapers and news magazines. This has led the consortium to announce that it will now sell the titles.

The government said the legislation would “deliver additional protections for a free press”.

On Tuesday, RedBird said the consortium’s ownership would have seen the “the strongest editorial protections ever put forward for a UK newspaper, along with much-needed investment.”

But it added: “Under the legislation’s definition of foreign power, it will not be possible for RedBird IMI to proceed with its proposed takeover of the Telegraph and Spectator.”