London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025

BT union asks minister to ensure any takeover bid protects jobs

BT union asks minister to ensure any takeover bid protects jobs

Prospect raises concerns about R&D and national interest, days before largest investor is free to make offer
One of the biggest unions representing BT workers has urged the business secretary to ensure any potential takeover bid protects the telecoms company’s 100,000 staff, its hundreds of millions in research spending and the national interest.

Prospect wrote to Kwasi Kwarteng days before BT’s largest shareholder is allowed to make a potential offer under UK takeover rules.

Patrick Drahi, the French-Israeli telecoms billionaire known for cost-cutting at businesses he controls, is free to make his next move from 11 December with the expiry of a no-bid clause that was triggered when he took his £2.2bn stake in June.

Mike Clancy, the general secretary of Prospect, said: “The business secretary must take personal charge of making sure that any proposed takeover supports growing that investment, not a flight of money or skills overseas. We need a clear focus on protecting both our national interests and jobs while boosting private sector research and development (R&D), all of which could be at risk with a controversial takeover.”

Prospect said that any acquirer of BT, which is one of the UK’s biggest private sector tech and R&D investors, spending £720m annually, could seek quick profits through cuts to jobs and research focusing on “a short-term pay out rather than long-term returns”.

Clancy said: “Media reports over BT’s future ownership will unsettle staff in the run-up to Christmas, especially given the amount of change that the company has seen and continues to experience. BT is one of the jewels in the crown of UK innovation and tech R&D, despite a tough economic environment.”

There are growing concerns about the threat to Britain’s economy and national security from a string of recent takeovers of UK companies by foreign rivals and private equity firms.

Any move on BT is certain to result in scrutiny from the government, which has already ordered a number of investigations into nationally sensitive deals including the $54bn (£40.6bn) takeover of the Cambridge-based chip designer Arm by its US rival Nvidia.

From January, the government will gain tougher powers to block the takeover of key national assets under the National Security and Investment Act 2021.

Drahi may consider options less controversial than mounting a full-scale takeover bid. For example, he could attempt to increase his direct influence by asking for a seat on BT’s board, like Deutsche Telekom, BT’s second-largest shareholder.

He could also move towards increasing his stake by looking to acquire the 12% controlled by DT, which it has held in a passive capacity since as a legacy of BT’s takeover of the mobile operator EE in 2015.

Tim Höttges, the chief executive of DT, has said he “entertaining all options” regarding BT’s future.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK and Vietnam Sign Landmark Migration Deal to Fast-Track Returns of Irregular Arrivals
UK Drug-Pricing Overhaul Essential for Life-Sciences Ambition, Says GSK Chief
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie Temporarily Leave the UK Amid Their Parents’ Royal Fallout
UK Weighs Early End to Oil and Gas Windfall Tax as Reeves Seeks Investment Commitments
UK Retail Inflation Slows as Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since Spring
Next Raises Full-Year Profit Guidance After Strong Third-Quarter Performance
Reform UK’s Lee Anderson Admits to 'Gaming' Benefits System While Advocating Crackdown
United States and South Korea Conclude Major Trade Accord Worth $350 Billion
Hurricane Melissa Strikes Cuba After Devastating Jamaica With Record Winds
Vice President Vance to Headline Turning Point USA Campus Event at Ole Miss
U.S. Targets Maritime Narco-Routes While Border Pressure to Mexico Remains Limited
Bill Gates at 70: “I Have a Real Fear of Artificial Intelligence – and Also Regret”
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Saudi Arabia Unveils Vision for First-Ever "Sky Stadium" Suspended Over Desert Floor
Amazon Announces 14 000 Corporate Job Cuts as AI Investment Accelerates
UK Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since March, Food Leads the Decline
London Stock Exchange Group ADR (LNSTY) Earns Zacks Rank #1 Upgrade on Rising Earnings Outlook
Soap legend Tony Adams, long-time star of Crossroads, dies at 84
Rachel Reeves Signals Tax Increases Ahead of November Budget Amid £20-50 Billion Fiscal Gap
NatWest Past Gains of 314% Spotlight Opportunity — But Some Key Risks Remain
UK Launches ‘Golden Age’ of Nuclear with £38 Billion Sizewell C Approval
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
×