Daily Mail and General Trust plc / Telegraph Media Group merger inquiry

16 October 2026: The Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (the Secretary of State) has announced the decision not to refer the anticipated acquisition by Daily Mail and General Trust plc (DMGT) of the Telegraph Media Group Holdings Limited (TMGH) to a phase 2 investigation on the ground that this merger is no longer in progress or in contemplation. As part of this decision, the CMA’s report has been published.

CMA report to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport

21 April 2026: The CMA has delivered its report to the Secretary of State.

13 February 2026: On 22 November 2025, Daily Mail and General Trust plc (DMGT) announced through a press notice its proposal to acquire the Telegraph Media Group Holdings Limited (TMGH). The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (the Secretary of State) announced on 12 February 2026 her decision to issue a Public Interest Intervention Notice (PIIN) in respect of the transaction.

The PIIN requires the CMA to investigate and report to the Secretary of State on jurisdictional and competition matters and for the Office of Communications (Ofcom) to report to the Secretary of State on the impact of the transaction on the media public interest considerations identified in the PIIN (as set out below) by 9am on 10 June 2026.

The CMA is required to submit a report to the Secretary of State on this transaction in accordance with section 44 of the Act by 9am on 10 June 2026.

For the purposes of this report, the CMA is considering whether it is or may be the case that this transaction, if carried into effect, will result in the creation of a relevant merger situation under the merger provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 (the Act) and, if so, whether the creation of that situation may be expected to result in a substantial lessening of competition within any market or markets in the United Kingdom for goods or services.