Newspaper Takeover Approved

The Government yesterday approved the takeover of Thames Valley Newspapers by the Guardian Media Group, which had been investigated by the Monopolies and Mergers Commission. Thames Valley Newspapers, a division of Thomson Regional Newspapers, publishes the Reading Evening Post, a weekly paid-for title and free weeklies in Reading Wokingham and Bracknell, Berkshire.

The deal increases GMG’s share of regional and local newspapers from 3.9 to 4.3%, but does not alter its ranking as the eighth largest UK publisher in the category.