The publisher of the Daily Mail has agreed a £500 million deal to buy Telegraph Media Group.

Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) agreed to purchase the Telegraph from Redbird IMI after an attempted purchase by the Abu Dhabi-backed investment firm was blocked by the then Tory government.

DMGT and Redbird IMI have now entered a period of exclusive talks in which they will finalise the deal and prepare regulatory submissions, which they “expect to happen quickly”.

DMGT said this would give “much-needed certainty and confidence” to Telegraph employees after the protracted takeover process.

DMGT chairman Lord Rothermere said: “I have long admired the Daily Telegraph. My family and I have an enduring love of newspapers and for the journalists who make them.

“The Daily Telegraph is Britain’s

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