Telegraph's Colson feels the heat

AFTER forcing Lord Black out of Hollinger International, shareholders are turning on his close associate Dan Colson, whose position as chairman of the Telegraph group and a director of Hollinger looks increasingly precarious.

Also chief operating officer of Hollinger, Colson, was revealed during the recent court battle between Black and Hollinger to have given company information to the Barclay brothers without telling the board. The judge struck down Black's deal to sell Hollinger to the Barclays.

According to reports, Lara Jereski of Tweedie Brown, Hollinger's leading institutional shareholder, has questioned Hollinger about why Colson is still with the company after his double-dealing was exposed.

Judge Leo Strine wrote that when Black had been talking to private equity specialists Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst about a sale of Hollinger, in contravention of an agreement with the Hollinger board, Colson had shown Hicks Muse executives around the firm's Chicago office.

He did not inform the board or its investment bankers, Lazard. 'During this period, Black shared details of his dealings with the Barclays with Colson, but Colson did not tell the other International directors,' the judge wrote.

Colson's failure to tell other directors that Black was planning to break his agreement not to sell Hollinger behind their backs was a clear betrayal of the company's interests, shareholders claim.