Royal Mail owner approves £3.5bn takeover deal with Czech billionaire

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Royal Mail owner International Distribution Services will be taken over after agreeing a £3.57 billion deal with Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky. IDS said the offer would see Royal Mail continue its universal service obligation to one-price-goes-anywhere first class post six days a week, and keep the company’s branding and UK headquarters. “The EP Group has the utmost respect for Royal Mail’s history and tradition, and I know that owning this business will come with enormous responsibility – not just to the employees but to the citizens who rely on its services every day.” The bid comes at a crucial time for Royal Mail, which put forward plans to regulator Ofcom earlier this month to scrap second-class letter deliveries on Saturdays and cut the service to every other weekday as part of turnaround efforts. “The IDS Board has negotiated a far-reaching package of legally binding undertakings and commitments which provide our customers, employees and broader stakeholders with important safeguards.” Communication Workers Union general secretary Dave Ward said: “We do welcome some of the commitments that have been made but the reality is postal workers across the UK have lost all faith in the senior management of Royal Mail and the service has been deliberately run down.