Bid to consolidate local newspapers

Tabloid veteran David Montgomery is leading talks to consolidate Britain’s local newspaper sector.

Trinity Mirror, owner of the Daily Mirror, said yesterday that it could take a minority stake in a new group formed by combining the assets of privately owned Yattendon’s Iliffe News & Media with Northcliffe’s 84 newspapers. Northcliffe is owned by Daily Mail.

The local newspaper market, in need of cost cuts to offset the loss of advertising revenues to the internet as well as falling circulations, is ripe for further consolidation, analysts have said.