Minister delays Sky takeover
Rupert Murdoch will have to wait a few more weeks to know whether 21st Century Fox’s bid for Sky will be referred for a UK investigation.
Rupert Murdoch will have to wait a few more weeks to know whether 21st Century Fox’s bid for Sky will be referred for a lengthy UK investigation.
Culture Secretary Karen Bradley, who is weighing whether to send the deal for an inquiry, repeated her view from June that the $15bn deal should be scrutinised to see if it gave Murdoch too much influence over Britain’s media.
But she said on Thursday she needed to look at the evidence received since then before taking a decision, which was likely to be in the next few weeks.
“There has not been time to consider all the representations and I am not in a position today to make my final decision on referral,” she told legislators.
“Having carefully reviewed the party’s representations, and in the absence of further proposed undertakings, I am still minded to refer on the media plurality grounds and still minded not to accept the undertakings in lieu of a referral.”
In June Bradley rejected proposals by Fox to ensure the independence of Sky’s news service if was allowed to buy the 61% of Sky it does not already own. Fox said it offered comprehensive proposals to mitigate any concerns about media influence, which had been accepted by the regulator, Ofcom.
“Consequently, we are disappointed that the secretary of state remains minded to refer on plurality,” the company said.
“In light of the transaction’s benefits to the UK creative economy, we would urge the secretary of state to complete the regulatory process expeditiously.”
Sky said that it was “disappointed” by the delay, noting the deal had been cleared by other regulators, including the European Commission. “A decision by the secretary of state on the next step in the process … needs to be made as swiftly as possible,” a spokesman said.
CONSEQUENTLY, WE ARE DISAPPOINTED THAT THE SECRETARY OF STATE REMAINS MINDED TO REFER ON PLURALITY