Telegraph takeover ‘completely unacceptable’ says former MI6 chief

A former MI6 chief has sounded the alarm bells over what he calls a potentially calamitous takeover of The Telegraph by an Abu Dhabi-backed firm.

Sir Richard Dearlove, who led the British Secret Intelligence Service from 1999 to 2004, said ministers should block the “completely unacceptable” takeover by the authoritarian state, which poses a “profound security concern” to the UK.

The government should “put a peg in the ground and say no way”, Dearlove told The Sunday Telegraph. 

“It’s completely inappropriate for an autocratic state – even at arm’s length – to be the owner of The Telegraph and The Spectator,” he added.

The Barclay brothers, former owners of the right-leaning titles, recently restored a nearly £1.2bn debt in an attempt to reclaim their titles. The amends was facilitated by RedBird IMI media fund, backed by a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family.

Chief executive of Redbird IMI and former CNN boss, Jeff Zucker, said the Barclay era of ownership of the papers “will come to an end” if the takeover is green-lighted by the government.

Zucker faced a grilling on the deal over the weekend.

When questioned about staff concerns, Zucker told The Sunday Times: “I understand why they are anxious and nervous, and I respect it. But in time it will be proven to be misplaced.”

He has vowed to resign if the Telegraph faces any editorial influence from the UAE, arguing its value lies with its editorial freedom.

“I think the other thing that people are missing here is it makes no sense whatsoever for anyone to make an investment of this magnitude and to interfere and throw away that good money”, he added.

Nearly 70 per cent of Telegraph subscribers have said they would be “a bit less likely” or “much less likely” to continue subscribing in the event of a foreign takeover, according to a recent YouGov poll.

With the government’s intervention through a Public Interest Intervention Notice (PIIN), watchdogs Ofcom and the Competition and Markets Authority are now tasked with probing the potential ownership transition.

The outcome, due by 24 January next year, rests in the hands of media secretary Lucy Frazer, who holds the final say.

Zucker is unbothered about the prospect of the government blocking the deal. “We’re confident that we can satisfactorily answer all questions of the government, and so I’m not going to get into that hypothetical,” he said.

If the government gives the go-ahead for the deal, Redbird IMI will gain control of the papers through a debt-for-equity swap.

City A.M. approached the government for comment.