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Tourang to sack Malcolm
Turnbull from its board
SYDNEY: The Tourang consor-
tium of Kerry Packer and Conrad
Black bidding for the John Fairfax
publishing group has confirmed it
plans to sack investment banker
Malcolm Turnbull from its board.
In a statement last night, Tour-
ang's interim chairman Daniel Col-
son said Tourang directors would
meet on Friday to convene a share-
holders' meeting to pass a resolu-
tion removing Mr Turnbull from
the board.
Mr Colson said Mr Turnbull,
who represents Fairfax's US junk-
bond holders, had offered to resign
on November 23, but subsequently
refused to do so as he was unwilling
to agree to the conditions demand-
ed of him.
He said the departure of Mr
Turnbull would have no implica-
tions for Tourang's exclusive agree-
ment with the junk-bond holders,
which remained "in full force and
effect".
"We remain confident that
Tourang's proposal represents the
best commercial solution for the
various Fairfax creditor groups."
The statement gave no reasons
for the board's decision to remove
Mr Turnbull.
But it comes on the eve of an
expected announcement by the
Australian Broadcasting Tribunal
on whether it will hold a public
inquiry into the sale.
As a former employee of Nine
Network owner, Kerry Packer, Mr
Turnbull's directorship was expect-
ed to come under the scrutiny of
the tribunal, which must decide
whether Mr Packer would exercise
control of the newspaper group.
The Consolidated Press chair-
man's 14.9 per cent stake in Tour-
ang would put him within the 15
per cent limit allowed under media
cross-ownership laws.
But the Broadcasting Act also
prevents an associate of a news-
paper owner from exercising more
control over the business than is
permitted.
Mr Turnbull said on Sunday that
he had received legal advice not to
resign and the only way he could be
removed would be by a formal vote
of the three Tourang partners —
Mr Packer, Canadian publisher Mr
Black, and US investment firm
Hellman and Friedman.
He also questioned whether the
adviser to the Fairfax receiver,
Mark Burrows, was involved in the
moves to remove him from Tour-
ang to smooth the way for a quick
sale.
"I have been told that Mr Bur-
rows has reportedly told Tourang
that a sale to Tourang will be done
more quickly if I am removed," the
Australian Financial Review quot-
ed Mr Turnbull as saying.
Mr Turnbull could not be con-
tacted last night for comment on
the latest developments, but he has
always maintained he would be an
independent director on the Fair-
fax board.
The other bidders for the Fairfax
group are Irishman Tony O'Reil-
ly's 1NP Consortium and Mel-
bourne-based consortium
Australian Independent News-
papers.
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