Competition Mergers involving newspaper enterprises and foreign states
Amendments to Part 3 of the Enterprise Act which require the Secretary of State to give an intervention notice to the CMA where they suspect it is or may be the case that a foreign state merger situation has been created – or will be created as a result of arrangements in progress or in contemplation – are modelled on existing procedures, also in Part 3, which apply to mergers involving media enterprises raising public interest considerations.
	Whereas the Secretary of State has a discretion to intervene in public interest cases, and may accept undertakings or impose discretionary remedies to prevent a merger operating against the public interest, the Secretary of State is under an obligation to intervene in a suspected foreign state merger situation and to refer the merger CMA for investigation, and to make an Order to reverse or prevent the merger if the CMA concludes that a foreign state merger situation has resulted or would result if arrangements in progress or in contemplation were carried into effect.
	A foreign state merger situation is created where there is a merger involving a newspaper enterprise which has resulted or would result in a foreign power having the ability to control or to influence the policy of the person carrying on the newspaper enterprise. The definition of "foreign power" is based on the definition in section 32 of the National Security Act 2023 but it has been expanded to capture a wider variety of actors including the head or senior members of a foreign government, or an agency or authority of a foreign government or the officers of the governing political party of a foreign government, acting in their private capacity, as well as persons associated with a foreign power, as defined in section 127 of the Enterprise Act 2002.