Express publishers plan new London newspaper

Northern and Shell, the publisher of Express Newspapers, is to launch a London evening newspaper early next year.

The paper will be in competition with the Evening Standard and free newspaper Metro.

It is anticipated the paper will be given away free for an initial period at least. A title will be announced in the New Year.

A spokesman for Northern and Shell, headed by chairman Richard Desmond, said the project had been months in the planning. Currently there were no plans to take it outside of the capital.

The company would shortly appoint a commercial director to oversee the project and the appointee would be "someone with experience of a newspaper in the Metro mould".