Oliver Dowden, the national security tsar and close ally of Rishi Sunak, has oversight of national security matters in the UK Cabinet. He is responsible for overseeing the National Security and Investment Act (NSIA), which allows the government to block acquisitions of assets vital to national security. RedBird IMI, a joint venture between RedBird Capital and International Media Investments (IMI), is in line to take control of The Telegraph through a deal with the Barclay family. More than a dozen Tory MPs have urged Dowden to intervene under the NSIA, citing potential national security threats. Although Attorney General Lucy Frazer has expressed her intention to issue a Public Interest Intervention Notice (PIIN), Dowden's involvement is still sought. Dowden has previously emphasized the importance of press freedom and a diverse media. Seventeen deals have been blocked under the NSIA, including an order for Chinese-owned tech giant Nexperia to sell the UK's largest chip plant. As the deadline for the RedBird IMI deal approaches, Dowden will need to balance concerns about editorial freedom with the UK's relationship with Gulf nations [82270aeb].
The potential acquisition of The Telegraph by RedBird IMI has raised concerns about national security, prompting more than a dozen Tory MPs to call for intervention under the National Security and Investment Act (NSIA). Oliver Dowden, the national security tsar and ally of Rishi Sunak, has oversight of national security matters in the UK Cabinet and is responsible for overseeing the NSIA. The NSIA allows the government to block acquisitions of assets that are deemed vital to national security. While Attorney General Lucy Frazer has expressed her intention to issue a Public Interest Intervention Notice (PIIN), Dowden's involvement is still being sought. Dowden has previously emphasized the importance of press freedom and a diverse media. As the deadline for the RedBird IMI deal approaches, Dowden will need to carefully consider the potential national security threats and balance them with concerns about editorial freedom and the UK's relationship with Gulf nations [82270aeb].
In a separate development, Hatem Dowidar, the chief executive of Emirates Telecommunications (E&), a UAE-backed telecoms group, is set to join the Vodafone board as a non-executive director. E& is 60% owned by the UAE government and has been building a stake in Vodafone since 2022, becoming the largest shareholder with 14.6%. This appointment has raised concerns about national security, as E& has faced accusations of online censorship and alleged attempts to spy on citizens. Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden previously warned about the relationship between Vodafone and E& posing a threat to Britain, given Vodafone's work with government departments and its influence on the UK telecoms industry. In response, Vodafone has agreed to establish a national security committee to oversee sensitive work that affects the UK and to inform ministers about any change or termination of the partnership [57089363].