The Ulster Unionist deputy leader, Mr John Taylor MP, has criticised Trinity Mirror Group's decision to sell Belfast Telegraph Newspapers to Independent News & Media. He said the matter required a "full investigation".

"It would give the Independent group 100 per cent ownership of Sunday papers in Northern Ireland, ownership of the only sporting paper in Northern Ireland, ownership of 33 per cent of the farming press in Northern Ireland, ownership of the largest daily newspaper in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and ownership of the largest evening paper in Dublin.

"The deal would be a serious blow to competition within newspapers in Ireland. It would lead to the loss of printing jobs from Belfast to Dublin," he said.

Mr Taylor said there would also be a potential threat to journalists' jobs in the long term in the North's two morning daily newspapers, the Irish News and the News Letter, if Independent News & Media published a morning newspaper or an edition of the Independent in Belfast.

However, the decision has been welcomed by the managing director of Belfast Telegraph Newspapers, Mr Derek Carvell, who was involved in an unsuccessful management buyout bid for the newspaper. "I feel certain that Independent News & Media will bring further benefits to our company and ensure it continues to play an important role in Northern Ireland as one of the province's leading companies," he said.