A £4bn takeover of British defence company Cobham by a US private equity giant is set to go ahead after the UK government said it had reviewed national security concerns and was considering giving the all-clear.
The family of Cobham’s founder have been vocally critical of the deal, warning in July that it poses “grave risks to national security”. MPs have also voiced concerns.
But business secretary Andrea Leadsom said on Tuesday she was “minded to accept” Advent’s takeover of Cobham after the American firm gave assurances to allay security fears about the controversial deal.
Existing security arrangements which currently apply to Cobham and protect “sensitive” government information will be continued and strengthened, Ms Leadsom said.
Advent has assured that appointments to Cobham’s board will “comply with nationality requirements”. Earlier this month, Advent offered to put Britons in charge of Cobham’s important UK defence contracts.
1/50 18 November 2019
Mist over Buttermere lake in the Lake District
PA
2/50 17 November 2019
Stefanos Tsitsipas lifts the winners trophy after beating Dominic Thiem at the ATP World Tour Finals tennis tournament in London
EPA
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7/50 12 November 2019
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27/50 23 October 2019
Thirty-nine bodies have been found in a lorry container in Essex, police have said.
The discovery of 38 adults and one teenager was made at an industrial estate in Thurrock.
Police said they believed the lorry had come from Bulgaria and entered the UK at Holyhead, in Wales, on Saturday.
Essex Police said it had launched a murder investigation after its officers were called to Waterglade Industrial Park, in Grays, in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
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28/50 22 October 2019
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29/50 21 October 2019
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30/50 20 October 2019
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48/50 2 October 2019
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49/50 1 October 2019
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50/50 30 September 2019
Two tourists pose for pictures in front of Union and EU flags outside the Houses of Parliament in London
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1/50 18 November 2019
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PA
2/50 17 November 2019
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EPA
3/50 16 November 2019
Duke of York, speaking for the first time about his links to Jeffrey Epstein in an interview with BBC Newsnight’s Emily Maitlis
BBC/PA
4/50 15 November 2019
Brazilian indigenous leader, Kreta Kaingang from the Kaingang People, holds a petition letter with over 200,000 signatures asking the UK government to suspend trade talks with Brazil until the Amazon and its people are protected, as he poses outside 10 Downing Street
AFP via Getty
5/50 14 November 2019
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6/50 13 November 2019
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn wears a pair of mittens that say ‘Pick Pam’, referring to Labour MP Pam Duncan-Glancy (not pictured) as he visits the Heart of Scotstoun Community Centre in Glasgow
Getty
7/50 12 November 2019
Head glass conservator Sam Kelly inspects the Angeli Laudantes and Angeli Ministrantes stained glass windows at Salisbury Cathedral as restoration work to clean, conserve and restore the windows, installed in 1879, gets underway
PA
8/50 11 November 2019
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PA
9/50 10 November 2019
World War II Supermarine Spitfire fighter performs a flyover over White Cliffs of Dover during Remembrance Sunday celebrations
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10/50 9 November 2019
Snow falling in Glyn Ceiriog near Llangollen in Denbighshire
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11/50 8 November 2019
Scottish National Party candidates, including SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford (centre left) and Nicola Sturgeon (centre), with a Brexit message at the party’s General Election campaign launch in Edinburgh
PA
12/50 7 November 2019
Delivery lorry stuck in flood water at Coston Ford, Leicestershire after heavy rainfall in the area
PA
13/50 6 November 2019
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson makes a statement to announce the general election at Downing Street in London, Britain
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14/50 5 November 2019
Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson speaking at the launch of their general election campaign at the Institute of Civil Engineers in London
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15/50 4 November 2019
Pelicans in St James’s Park in central London
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Dancers perform a mass Ghoomar dance during Diwali celebrations in Trafalgar Square, London
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17/50 2 November 2019
Campaigners listen as SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon addresses a rally calling for Scottish independence in Glasgow
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18/50 1 November 2019
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PA
19/50 31 October 2019
Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn gestures as launches the party’s election campaign in south London. Britain will go to the polls on December 12
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PA
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PA
22/50 28 October 2019
Paul Hayes of Lower Lydbrook ferries children to dry land after the River Wye burst its banks flooding the Gloucestershire village
PA
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Cosplayers during the third day of London’s Comic Con
PA
24/50 26 October 2019
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25/50 25 October 2019
Meerkats at Blair Drummond Safari Park, Stirling, investigate a carved pumpkin as the park celebrates national pumpkin day on Saturday October 26.
PA
26/50 24 October 2019
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27/50 23 October 2019
Thirty-nine bodies have been found in a lorry container in Essex, police have said.
The discovery of 38 adults and one teenager was made at an industrial estate in Thurrock.
Police said they believed the lorry had come from Bulgaria and entered the UK at Holyhead, in Wales, on Saturday.
Essex Police said it had launched a murder investigation after its officers were called to Waterglade Industrial Park, in Grays, in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
A 25-year-old-man from Northern Ireland has been arrested on suspicion of murder
PA
28/50 22 October 2019
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PA
29/50 21 October 2019
Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator’s Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife. The messy display is the culmination of a weekend of festivities where first years say thank you to their more senior student “parents” for mentoring them
PA
30/50 20 October 2019
Wales players celebrate after beating France in their Rugby World Cup quarter-final in Japan. Warren Gatland’s side had to battle after France’s fast start but capitalised on their rivals’ ill discipline to squeeze into the semi-finals, 20-19
Reuters
31/50 19 October 2019
People gather in London to join the Final Say march for a people’s vote
Angela Christofilou/The Independent
32/50 18 October 2019
Protesters on Whitehall in London during an Extinction Rebellion climate change protest
PA
33/50 17 October 2019
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson shake hands during a news conference after agreeing on a Brexit deal, in Brussels
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34/50 16 October 2019
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PA
35/50 15 October 2019
Police officers carry away an activist as Extinction Rebellion protesters block a road with a caravan in central London
Reuters
36/50 14 October 2019
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AFP
37/50 13 October 2019
Great Britain’s Joe Fraser competes on Parallel Bars during the World Gymnastics Championships in Stuttgart, Germany. He claimed GB’s second gold with his victory. The 20-year-old from Birmingham nailed his routine to score 15.0 then watched as a series of rivals failed to live up to his total
Getty
38/50 12 October 2019
St Helens players celebrate with the trophy after they won the Super League Grand Final at Old Trafford in Manchester. They beat Salford Red Devils 23-6
PA
39/50 11 October 2019
Richard Ratcliffe, husband of British-Iranian aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe jailed in Tehran since 2016, holds his daughter Gabriella during a news conference in London. Their five-year-old daughter has arrived back in Britain, after making the “bittersweet” decision to bring her home
AFP/Getty
40/50 10 October 2019
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson at Thornton Manor. Their meeting focused on further Brexit proposals
EPA/Noel Mullen
41/50 9 October 2019
Wales survived an almighty scare against Fiji to secure quarter-final spot at the rugby world cup. Warren Gatland’s side recovered from a 10-0 deficit thanks to a hat-trick from Josh Adams
AFP/Getty
42/50 8 October 2019
Protesters dubbed the Red Rebels at Millbank at the junction with Great College Street, during an Extinction Rebellion protest in Westminster
PA
43/50 7 October 2019
Final preparations are made in front of a reproduction of Michelangelo’s ‘The Last Judgement’, ahead of the opening of for the ‘Michelangelo: A Different View’ exhibition at Hull Minister
PA
44/50 6 October 2019
A car drives through a flooded street in Whitley Bay in Northumberland
PA
45/50 5 October 2019
Thousands took to the streets of Edinburgh today to march in support of a second Scottish independence referendum
EPA
46/50 4 October 2019
A 12ft sculpture of a gorilla, entitled ‘Gorilla Apocalypse’, created by Luke Kite entirely from scrap car bumpers and panels discarded in the last decade is on display at the British Ironwork Centre in Oswestry, Shropshire
PA
47/50 3 October 2019
Police stands in front of the Treasury building during an Extinction Rebellion protest in London
Reuters
48/50 2 October 2019
Ex-Thomas Cook employees demonstrate in London after delivering a petition calling for a full inquiry into Thomas Cook’s collapse and for the company’s directors to pay back their bonuses
AFP/Getty
49/50 1 October 2019
A road in Alum Rock, Birmingham is flooded after persistent heavy rain
PA
50/50 30 September 2019
Two tourists pose for pictures in front of Union and EU flags outside the Houses of Parliament in London
PA
Cobham’s new owners must honour the terms of existing contracts, notify the Ministry of Defence in advance if there is a material change to Cobham’s ability to supply key services, and refrain from withdrawing from any specified service for a set period.
Advent must also give the MoD prior notice of any future plans to sell the whole, or part of, Cobham’s business. This is to give ministers time to invoke powers designed to protect national security interests that could be affected by transactions.
If these conditions are not met, the business secretary said she would consider referring the deal for further investigation.
The deal is seen as a test of the government’s industrial strategy, part of which is to assess whether takeovers of significant UK firms are in the national interest.
Ms Leadsom said: “Following my update to Parliament on 5 November, I have now reviewed further national security advice from the Ministry of Defence and met with both Cobham and Advent who have offered legally binding undertakings designed to mitigate national security concerns, which I am minded to accept.
“They will now be considered by a public consultation and I will provide a further update once that process has concluded.
“No decision will be taken on whether to accept the undertakings until the consultation has closed and the representations have been carefully considered.
“This decision on the national security considerations is separate to any discussions on the economic implications of the proposed merger.”
