Morrisons’ takeover of McColl’s has provisionally been approved after confirming it would sell 28 convenience stores to address competition concerns.

In July, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched its investigation into the supermarket’s £190m takeover of the struggling convenience chain.

Following its first phase, it found the deal would not harm the vast majority of shoppers or other businesses, but it raised competition concerns in 35 areas. At the time, the two retailers accepted these concerns and engaged with the CMA in discussing a solution.

This week, Morrisons offered to sell 28 McColl’s stores, including 26 in England, in areas such as Swindon, Lincoln and Brentwood), one in Scotland (Perth), and one in Wales (Newport).

While the number of McColl’s stores that Morrisons is proposing to sell is lower than the number of areas in which concerns were identified, the sale of some stores would address the concerns in multiple areas.

The CMA is now consulting on the proposals for the sale of these stores, and if it accepts the deal would proceed.

CMA senior director of mergers, Sorcha O’Carroll said: “Our preliminary view is that the sale of these stores will preserve competition in these local areas and prevent consumers from losing out due to this deal, at a time when shoppers are already facing rising prices.

“If, after reviewing the responses to our consultation, we conclude that the competition issues have been addressed, the deal will be cleared.”

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