Morrisons: Government seeks assurances over Fortress takeover bid

Business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng will request talks with the supermarket giant’s chair, Andy Higginson, in the coming weeks, according to The Financial Times.

Kwarteng is likely to seek assurances over jobs, pensions and Morrisons’ UK operations. 

It comes after the Morrisons board agreed a 254p per share offer from Majestic Wine owner Fortress, valuing the grocer at £6.3bn. 

Fortress, which is owned by SoftBank, has vowed to protect Morrisons employees, suppliers and pensioners should the takeover go ahead. 

It also pledged that there would be no “material” sale and leaseback programmes on its freehold store estate. 

But Kwarteng said he was “monitoring the situation” and was “very interested in seeing how the situation develops”. 

He told the FT: “We need to assess what’s going on before making rush judgments. You have to look at behaviour, specifics and track record and see that certain safeguards are kept.”

Fortress managing partner Josh Pack sent a letter to Kwarteng and environment secretary George Eustace when the deal was agreed at the weekend in a bid to allay any concerns about the swoop. 

Pack said Fortress was “acutely aware of the wider responsibilities that come with ownership of a business with Morrisons’ history, culture and importance to the British public, and I want to reassure you that we fully intend to be a supportive and responsible owner of Morrisons, should we complete the transaction successfully”. 

He added that Fortress would continue to operate Morrisons as a standalone business, maintain its headquarters in Bradford, safeguard pensions and maintain the landmark £10 an hour pay deal the grocer introduced earlier this year. 

A Government spokesman said: “We are committed to ensuring that the UK remains open for business, while protecting the livelihoods of British workers and investment in the UK.

“The Government recognises that overseas investors play a major and positive role in stimulating economic growth in every part of the UK. In most cases, it is right that mergers are treated as a commercial matter for the parties involved.”

Fortress’ offer has been recommended by the Morrisons board, but it must be approved by 75% of its shareholders, and competition authorities, in order to proceed.