NGOs urge Nandy to halt sale of Telegraph over China links
The international non-governmental organisations, which include Index on Censorship, Reporters Without Borders and Article 19, have written to Lisa Nandy arguing that RedBird Capital's links with China 'threaten media pluralism, transparency and information integrity in the UK'.
A consortium led by RedBird Capital agreed a deal in May to buy the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph, ending two years of uncertainty over the future of the titles.
The organisations said that RedBird Capital's chair, John Thornton, sits on the advisory council of the China Investment Corporation, the country's largest sovereign wealth fund.
Thornton, a former chair of Goldman Sachs Asia, has also previously chaired the Silk Road Finance Corporation.
'Both [are] vehicles through which China has pursued financial influence,' the letter said.
The signatories, who also include Hong Kong Watch, Human Rights in China and the Hong Kong Democracy Council, said Nandy should follow her predecessor, Lucy Frazer, who issued a public interest intervention notice (PIIN) in January last year.
RedBird Capital, which contributed 25% of the funding to the RedBird IMI joint venture that controls the Telegraph, is in the process of buying out its partner, IMI.
IMI, which may retain a stake of up to 15% in the Telegraph under RedBird Capital's plan, is controlled by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, vice-president of the United Arab Emirates.
The letter to Nandy states: 'We believe that there is reasonable grounds to suspect the Telegraph acquisition by RedBird Capital raises both public interest and potential foreign media influence concerns. We call on you to issue relevant notices to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Ofcom.'
The signatories also said the culture department should ensure that the investigations carried out by the CMA and Ofcom, the communications regulator, involve independent consultation with 'experts in Chinese foreign information manipulation and influence operations, as well as experts in media pluralism, transparency, and freedom of expression'.
Separately, the former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith and the independent peer David Alton have written to Nandy asking her to investigate reports of a £5.3m editorial budget cut.
The politicians claim that the cuts, revealed by the former Telegraph journalist Fraser Nelson, represent a change to the paper's structure that is not allowed during a takeover process.
They argued that the government's 2024 public interest merger reference pending approval of a takeover prohibits changes to the editorial structure and staff of the Telegraph.
A spokesperson for the newspaper group, said: 'Ongoing management and oversight of Telegraph Media Group and its operations require the board and chief executive to liaise with all relevant stakeholders, including RedBird Capital, in line with agreed governance protocols.
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'The board and chief executive will continue to fulfil their fiduciary duties and facilitate an anticipated transaction, consistent with the requirements of relevant government legislation.'
In June, a cross-party group of MPs and peers, including Duncan Smith and Lord Alton, called on ministers to investigate how RedBird Capital is funding its £500m takeover.
A spokesperson for RedBird said: 'There is no Chinese involvement or influence in RedBird Capital's proposed acquisition of the Telegraph.' They added that the company had 'been clear on its position regarding press independence, which is a fundamental tenet of its investment thesis in owning and growing news businesses – whether it's CBS News in the US or the Telegraph in the UK'.
The spokesperson said that, after more than two years in 'regulatory limbo', it was now time for the takeover to be completed and to 'finally position the Telegraph for growth'.
'The partnership with RedBird will enable the Telegraph's world-class group of editors and reporters to thrive in this transformative moment for news organisations globally.'
Last month, the sale of the Telegraph came a step closer after government legislation to allow foreign states to own up to 15% in British newspapers survived a potentially fatal vote in the House of Lords.
RedBird Capital – which is also potentially aiming to bring in investors including the parent company of the Daily Mail and Len Blavatnik, the owner of Warner Music – has also said it can fully fund a deal in its own right.
The government declined to comment.
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