Labour open to Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky’s Royal Mail bid

The Labour Party is open to the prospect of a takeover of the owner of Royal Mail by the struggling postal group’s Czech billionaire investor, which is considering a renewed approach.

EP Group, a conglomerate controlled by Daniel Kretinsky, revealed on Tuesday that it had made a “non-binding indicative proposal” to the board of International Distributions Services (IDS), Royal Mail’s parent company, on April 9 seeking its recommendation for a possible cash offer for the remainder of the shares it does not already own.

Vesa, a Luxembourg-based vehicle of EP Group’s investors, is the largest shareholder in IDS, having built a stake of about 27.6 per cent in the London-listed group.

In a statement after the stock market closed on Wednesday, IDS said it had