The likely owners of Britain's Daily Telegraphinsisted today they would not change the political affiliation of a newspaper that has long been associated with the Conservative Party.
"To avoid any confusion, we will not change the editorial position of the Daily Telegraph. The Daily Telegraphhas a long established editorial position which we respect and with which we do not intend to interfere," said Mr David Barclay.
Mr Barclay and his brother Frederick announced a deal on Sunday to buy a controlling stake in the paper's parent, Hollinger International, from embattled press baron Mr Conrad Black.
Mr David Barclay's statement came after he was quoted in the rival Guardiannewspaper as saying the editorial stance of the Telegraphwas flexible.
Asked if the Telegraphwill continue to be the house-organ of the Conservative party, the paper quoted Mr Barclay as saying, "certainly not."
The Barclays' deal with Mr Black to buy his controlling stake in Hollinger - which in turn controls 73 per cent of Hollinger International's voting shares - is not yet a done deal. The International board has scheduled an emergency meeting for this afternoon in New York and is expected to discuss ways to derail the transaction.
Mr David Barclay told the Guardianhe was confident that regulators would not block the newspaper takeover deal in Britain. "It's a formality," he said.
Ofcom, the British media regulator, did not respond to requests for comment.