Tom Watson warning on Sky takeover
The Government says it is likely to approve a bid from 21st Century Fox to takeover Sky – providing it sells Sky News to another organisation.
Culture Secretary Matt Hancock also announced a rival bid from US media giant Comcast had been given the green light, in a move that is likely to set up a multibillion-pound bidding war for the British broadcaster.
Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox wants to buy the 61 per cent of Sky that it does not already own in an £18.5 billion deal.
But the proposal has drew widespread criticism over the level of control it would give Mr Murdoch over the media in the UK.
21st Century Fox has welcomed the decision and announced it has already submitted plans to sell Sky News to Disney.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Labour's deputy leader and shadow culture secretary Tom Watson warned that such a move could backfire if the planned takeover of 21st Century Fox by Disney should collapse.
He said the move could leave Sky News 'vulnerable' and questioned Mr Hancock's view that the takeover would not threaten broadcasting standards.
Mr Watson suggested that upcoming court cases brought against The Sun newspaper could show maladministration by Fox, which might make the minister change his view.
"Were the Fox-Disney deal to fail it could leave Sky News isolated from Sky and owned by a foreign company with few news interests in the UK," the West Bromwich East MP said.
"It is hard to see how that would be in the public interest."
He added that it was vital that Sky News' independence was protected to ensure that it 'thrives going forward'.
Comcast, which owns US TV network NBC and Universal Studios, made a rival bid earlier this year that valued Sky at £22bn.
The takeover bids are part of a complex web of global media deals, with giant companies competing to buy smaller businesses in the hope of securing their long-term future in the face of challenges from streaming services such as Amazon and Netflix.
