Barclay brothers buy Telegraph

THE BOSS of the Telegraph newspaper group today said he did not expect radical changes at the two titles after they were bought for £665m by the Barclay twins.

'If you pay this kind of money it hardly suggests you'll start tearing them apart,' said chief executive Jeremy Deedes.

'One can only look at other acquisitions of theirs. We have talked to people who have worked for them and they come out with 10 out of 10 as employers.

'The most important thing the papers need and staff desire is certainty and stability, and the Barclay brothers will bring both of those.'

Deedes added that he hoped the editors at the Daily and Sunday Telegraph would not be replaced.

The 69-year-old millionaire brothers, Sir David and Sir Frederick, had shunned the limelight as proprietors of the Ritz, The Scotsman and The Business newspapers.

By buying Conservative Britain's favourite broadsheet, they have entered the big time, politically and socially. Today, Telegraph staff and readers were clamouring to know if they will change direction and format, and crucially, who will emerge as the Barclays' chosen editors.

Favourites from their forays into newspapers are being mentioned, including Andrew Neil, editor-in-chief of The Business, and BBC business editor Jeff Randall, a former editor for the brothers. Other candidates are Dominic Lawson, who would move from the Sunday Telegraph to take charge of the bigger daily. The current editor, Martin Newland, was appointed only last October.

What is certain is the political slant of the titles is unlikely to shift dramatically. Although they were both knighted by Tony Blair, the Barclay twins are Rightwingers, natural Conservatives.

One area of controversy is bound to be their insistence on living offshore on their own Channel Island, Brecqhou. This has kept them beyond the reach of media and, it is suspected, the taxman.

Not all Telegraph readers, many of whom believe passionately in British values and society, may take kindly to their regard for tax havens in Monaco and the Channel Islands. Where they stand on issues like the NHS and State education, for instance, remain large unknowns.

The twins are expected to lavish considerable love and money on their new 'trophy' assets. Their time at the Ritz has been notable for its positioning at the top of the luxury market - a place that can only be maintained by constant expenditure and attention to every last detail.

The Barclays have said they will pump a further £53m in cash and working capital into the Telegraph Group. Although the group is highly profitable, with underlying operating profits of more than £40m, the main title is losing circulation, down to 837,000 in May from 909,000 a year earlier.

Sir David and Sir Frederick have ended up paying more than twice the original £260m they offered Lord Black, the ousted chief executive of Hollinger International, for his controlling stake in the Telegraph.

That deal, which would also have given them control of the Jerusalem Post and Chicago Sun-Times, was blocked by Hollinger's board of directors and ruled out by the US courts.

The auction for the Telegraph titles also saw bids from Express Newspapers owner Richard Desmond, Daily Mail and General Trust, owner of the Daily Mail, the Mail on Sunday, the Evening Standard adn This Is Money, and venture capital firms.

Last night's deal may not be the final throw of the dice, with several outstanding issues still to be decided by the US courts, and no immediate word from Lord Black of Crossharbour, who still controls 72% of the voting rights in Hollinger International.

Aidan Barclay, chairman of the twins' Press Acquisitions and expected to become chairman of the Telegraph, said: 'We are delighted to have reached agreement for the purchase of the Telegraph Group, which comprises some of the great titles in newspaper publishing.'