Murdoch's bid to control Sky faces fresh scrutiny

Former Liberal Democrat business secretary Vince Cable told the Press Association that the group is set to approach the communications watchdog just days after sending a letter outlining concerns over alleged governance failures and a lack of transparency at Mr Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox.

“I, together with various people from different parties - Ken Clarke, Ed Miliband, Lord Falconer - have approached Ofcom and we are going to make representations to them,” he said.

Mr Miliband’s office confirmed that the group has requested a meeting for this week.

Fox is aiming to seize control of the 61% of Sky it does not own already and UK regulators have been given an extended deadline - now June 20 - to review the £11.7 billion takeover bid, in light of the June 8 General Election.

While the deal has been given the green light by EU regulators, Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and communication watchdog Ofcom have yet to complete their own investigations.

Once the CMA and Ofcom reports have been received, the Culture Secretary will have 10 working days to decide whether to approve the deal or ask for a more in-depth report.

The new timeline means that Sky’s fortunes could be decided as early as July 4.