Call of duty? Why yes, prime minister

Britain has been locked in a struggle between regulators and Big Tech, while Rishi Sunak has been trying to woo Silicon Valley giants, writes Chris Blackhurst. If only Sir Humphrey was here with a creative solution...

What would Jim Hacker and his ingenious permanent secretary, Sir Humphrey Appleby, make of current Big Tech deals? (Rex)

Oh, for the return of Yes, Prime Minister. It’s more than three decades old, but there’s no shortage of current material for modern successors to hapless premier Jim Hacker and the ingenious, manipulative permanent secretary Sir Humphrey Appleby.

Take the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and its attitude to Microsoft’s $69bn (£56bn) merger with Activision Blizzard, owner of hugely popular gaming franchises, including Call of Duty, Overwatch and Candy Crush. The UK regulator, headed by a formidably independent-minded lawyer, Sarah Cardell, does not like the deal one little bit. So, the CMA blocks it.

This, despite other competition authorities, notably the EU, unconditionally clearing the marriage. Among the world’s major regulators, only Lina Khan in the US sides with Cardell. But there, the process is different, and Microsoft is able to rush to court to seek clearance.