Media law reforms to boost press sustainability and protect independence
People’s access to independent and accurate news will be better protected under updated government rules, which will modernise powers around media mergers while supporting investment and growth.
- Long-term sustainability and independence of UK press protected with government plans to modernise media merger rules in public interest
- Powers to call in media mergers extended beyond TV, radio and newspapers to include online news sites and news magazines
- Introduction of a 15% cap for state-owned investors will minimise potential ‘chilling effect’ whilst ensuring there is minimal risk of foreign state influence or control
People’s access to independent and accurate news will be better protected under updated government rules being set out today, which will modernise powers around media mergers while supporting investment and growth.
The Culture Secretary will today confirm reforms to extend powers to scrutinise takeovers beyond traditional media to online news sites and magazines for the first time.
The media mergers regime will now cover acquisitions of UK online news publications and periodical news magazines, expanding beyond just television, radio and print newspapers as it presently stands.
This reflects modern news consumption habits, with Ofcom reporting that seven in ten UK adults say they consume online news in some capacity.
The expanded powers will allow greater scrutiny of takeovers that might negatively impact accurate reporting, freedom of expression and media plurality – which are essential to the UK’s democracy.
The government is also introducing targeted exceptions to allow certain state-owned investment funds - such as sovereign wealth funds or pension funds - to invest up to 15% in UK newspapers and news periodicals. This balanced approach will still limit any scope for foreign state control or influence of news organisations while giving them much-needed flexibility to seek business investment that supports their long-term sustainability.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said:
Britain’s free and independent press is a national asset like no other and it is right that we have strong measures in place to allow scrutiny of UK takeovers that might go against the public interest.
These important, modernising reforms are about protecting media plurality and reflect the changing ways in which people are consuming news.
We are fully upholding the need to safeguard our news media from foreign state control whilst recognising that news organisations must be able to raise vital funding. We are taking a proportionate, balanced approach to a threshold for low-risk investments that will remove a potential chilling effect on press sustainability, while supporting growth under our Plan for Change.
Secondary legislation will be laid to enact these changes and will be subject to votes in both Houses of Parliament.
The proposed amendments to the definition of newspaper for the Foreign State Influence regime will apply with retrospective effect from today.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
Exceptions to Foreign State Influence Regime
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 created new rules to prevent foreign states from acquiring ownership, control or influence over UK newspapers and news magazines.
The legislation covers a number of scenarios in which a foreign power could control or influence the policy of a newspaper or a news magazine enterprise – including if it holds, whether directly or indirectly, any shares or voting rights in a corporate body that carries on a newspaper enterprise, or if it has the right to appoint or remove members of staff.
The regime defines ‘foreign power’ broadly to include: the sovereign or head of a foreign state, any part of a foreign government including ministers, government agencies and authorities, and any governing political party or its officers. It applies where a foreign power could acquire control or influence over the policy of a newspaper through persons associated with it.
As permitted by the Act, the Government intends to introduce a number of targeted and specific exceptions to the regime via regulations, which are intended to offset potential negative impacts on inward investment into the press sector without undermining the core principles of the regime.
The previous government launched a consultation on exceptions to the regime which closed in July 2024. Ministers have carefully considered the responses received, including the views of newspaper groups that the previous government’s suggested thresholds were too low and would place unnecessary restrictions on their ability to raise funding.
Ministers consider that setting the threshold for State Owned Investors’ investment at 15% of shares or voting rights in a newspaper or news magazine is the most effective, simple and proportionate approach. State Owned Investors (SOIs) include sovereign wealth funds or public pension or social security schemes that make long-term investments on behalf of that state and which in many cases are operated at arms length.
The new measures carefully balance the need for newspapers and news magazines to have access to a range of investment from SOIs where control or influence by foreign states is unlikely to be a risk. It will avoid the need for the Culture Secretary to refer low levels of investment to the CMA for investigation where there is no likelihood of any material influence.
The UK has a strong track record for encouraging investment critical to growth within the media industry, and this pro-growth decision will continue that trend while providing a robust regulatory framework that protects press freedom and free speech.
Extending the scope of the media mergers regime
In November, the government launched a consultation on proposals to broaden the scope of the UK’s media merger regime. Having taken into account responses to the consultation, the government has decided to expand the scope of the media mergers regime from print newspapers and broadcasters to encompass online news platforms and periodical news magazines.
This will mean the Culture Secretary has the ability to intervene in a merger involving an online news publication that meets certain conditions relating to turnover or share of supply, where they believe a public interest consideration may be relevant. According to Ofcom’s annual report on news consumption in the UK, 71 percent of UK adults consume online news in some capacity, level with news consumed via TV and on demand (70 percent); and nearly a quarter of UK adults (22 percent) access news via print newspapers, increasing to 34 percent when including their online platforms.
News publications circulated on a weekly or monthly basis will also be brought in scope of the regime to ensure the legislation is fit for purpose given daily, local, and Sunday publications are already included.
The measures will ensure that the public interest can be safeguarded across these popular sources of news content for people across the UK. They will enable the Culture Secretary to intervene where necessary to protect the availability of a wide range of accurate and high-quality news, particularly for younger audiences as technology and news habits evolve.
The announcement follows recommendations from the independent regulator Ofcom as part of its statutory review of media ownership rules.
The inclusion of online news sites will apply both to the public interest media mergers regime and to the new Foreign State Influence regime.