Culture secretary Lisa Nandy says she is 'minded to intervene' in Sky's proposed £1.6bn takeover of ITV

Culture secretary Lisa Nandy says she is 'minded to intervene' in Sky's proposed £1.6bn takeover of ITV Sky’s takeover of ITV may be blocked after the culture secretary said she was ‘minded to intervene’ in the deal. In a statement to Parliament, Lisa Nandy said she was looking at the proposed tie-up on public interest grounds. She said she had potential concerns about the impact on the breadth of news providers, and how much control Sky would have in the media landscape. Nandy has the authority to intervene under the Enterprise Act, which states the need for free expression of opinion in news media and for there to be 'sufficient plurality'. She told MPs: ‘Having considered the anticipated merger, I am of the view that there are reasonable grounds to believe that it might affect availability of a wide range of high-quality and varied programming on the on-demand platforms that are now widely used by UK audiences.’ ITV agreed the sale of its media and entertainment arm to Sky for £1.6billion in July after months of talks over a possible deal. The deal, which has been in the works since the end of 2025, will see Sky buy ITV’s terrestrial TV channels and streaming service ITVX. The culture secretary said she was 'minded to intervene' in Sky's proposed takeover of ITV At the time, the two businesses said the deal would create a major competitor to global streaming giants like Disney Plus and Netflix. ITV is required by law to provide a free-to-air service until at least 2034 under the public service broadcasting licence. But in the future, change could be afoot. At some stage, Sky could decommission certain ITV shows or renegotiate their contracts. Sky is likely to want to make some cost savings. Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG said: 'It's no surprise, given the concerns around control of media and the risk of Comcast being lent on by the US administration. 'Burnham has not been as keen to portray himself as a Trump ally, and this is a handy way of putting some blue water between the UK and the USA. It doesn't kill the deal stone dead, but it does mean Sky will have to work harder to convince the government that this won't give the US too much of an interest in UK broadcasting.' Nandy said she was also considering intervention on the basis of a new public interest consideration to maintain a wide range of broadcasting to on-demand programmes. This would need new legislation to be brought forward, given that existing laws do not cover the impact of the merger on streaming or on-demand. Nandy said: ‘If I decide to intervene on the basis of this new public interest consideration, I will bring forward legislation which amends section 58 of the Act to extend the application of the public interest consideration relating to the availability of a wide range of broadcasting to on-demand programmes.’ Sky said it was confident the deal would create a stronger media business and support British programming and trusted news. 'We have already made clear commitments to protect ITV's identity, its free-to-air services and public service broadcasting obligations, and to ensure ITV News and Sky News remain distinct editorial voices,' a spokesperson said. ITV, which will become a standalone TV production business following the sale, said the intervention was not unexpected and would fully cooperate in the process. 'This is another important milestone in the regulatory review process towards creating a UK player with the scale and resources to better compete with global streaming platforms, benefiting viewers, advertisers and the UK creative industries,' a spokesperson said. Nandy said she had not taken a final decision on intervention, and ITV and Sky had until 20 October to respond. DIY INVESTING PLATFORMS Affiliate links: If you take out a product This is Money may earn a commission. These deals are chosen by our editorial team, as we think they are worth highlighting. This does not affect our editorial independence. Compare the best investing account for you