Former KGB agent 'in talks to but INM titles'

The Russian oligarch owner of the Evening Standard newspaper is in advanced talks to buy Independent News & Media (INM) newspapers The Independent and The Independent on Sunday, it was reported today.

Alexander Lebedev - a former KGB agent - is said to have rekindled discussions that were put on hold in the summer as INM focused on restructuring its mammoth debt pile, according to the Financial Times.