![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/screenshot2026-01-20130109-1003x778.webp.webp\")
\n The Standard website homepage on 20 January 2026<\/p>\n
\n The Standard website homepage on 20 January 2026<\/p>\n
Editorial and commercial staff on the Standard website have been told they could be transferred to the owner of The Independent<\/a>.<\/p>\n Evening Standard<\/a> Limited (ESL) would continue to publish its weekly print newspaper.<\/p>\n Standard staff on Tuesday were told the proposed outsourcing of the website to Independent Media will take effect from 1 March. However contract negotiations remain ongoing.<\/p>\n Staff were invited to apply for voluntary redundancy with a deadline of next Monday (26 January) at 9am. <\/p>\n If they do not apply for VR, but they object to being transferred to The Independent under TUPE (which protects employees\u2019 rights when they transfer to a new employer), then their employment would end on 1 March without any redundancy or notice payment.<\/p>\n Standard CEO Tamar Riley, who has led the business since July last year<\/a>, told staff that the business is \u201cin discussions\u201d with Independent Media to \u201cexpand our existing relationship to incorporate additional aspects of The Standard\u2019s digital operations, including digital content and commercial activity\u201d.<\/p>\n Lord Evgeny Lebedev<\/a> is the controlling shareholder of the Standard and is also the largest single shareholder of The Independent. Both businesses are based in the same London building.<\/p>\n In March 2024 The Independent took over the running of Buzzfeed UK, including Huffpost UK, in a multi-year licensing deal.<\/a><\/p>\n In the memo to staff, seen by Press Gazette, Riley said: \u201cIndependent Media has a proven track record in building and growing successful digital businesses. Closer collaboration between Independent Media and The Standard would present opportunities to further strengthen and enhance our digital operations.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will continue to maintain our current print product and core ESL print team, while further optimising the product to better align with client and audience needs, supported by a cost structure that future-proofs the business.\u201d<\/p>\n Riley added that the \u201cfocus is to create a structure that: strengthens our audience and commercial proposition; upholds the quality and integrity of The Standard\u2019s journalism; supports our people; positions the organisation for sustainable long-term growth\u201d.<\/p>\n Independent Media CEO Christian Broughton said in an email to Independent staff on Tuesday: \u201cIndependent Media has supported The Standard\u2019s digital operations for many years, and we are now in discussions about the potential to broaden our partnership.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are uniquely positioned to draw on a range of expertise and experience: we have a 10-year track record of consistent profitability and growth in digital, we have invested in our Studio business (podcasts, social video and newsletters) and proprietary AI tools, and we have successfully taken the BuzzFeed brands \u2013 including Tasty and HuffPost \u2013 into profitability in the UK and Ireland.<\/p>\n \u201cSo we are excited to explore how we can connect audiences and partners with the Standard\u2019s trusted, differentiated, high-quality journalism, combining our innovation, infrastructure and creativity with the globally renowned Standard brand.\u201d<\/p>\n The Evening Standard closed its daily print edition in September 2024<\/a> and now puts out a weekly title on Thursdays with more of a magazine feel. Around 150 staff were believed to have been made redundant (of which around 70 were in editorial) with the end of the daily edition.<\/p>\n A Standard insider, who asked to remain anonymous, told Press Gazette they understood the Standard currently has a staff of about 75 people and a core team of about 25 will be retained to work on the print edition. The rest would either transfer to The Independent or leave the business.<\/p>\n Press Gazette understands a list of 38 editorial staff who will transfer to The Independent if they do not choose to apply for voluntary redundancy has been circulated internally.<\/p>\n The insider said they believed \u201cthe beginning of the end\u201d for the Standard began when former Conservative chancellor George Osborne became editor in 2017<\/a> and \u201calienated half of London\u201d. \u201cBut the real end began with the pandemic and things never got better.\u201d<\/p>\n They noted that the Standard has not had an editor for more than a year since Dylan Jones stepped down<\/a>, as chief content officer Anna van Praagh has been acting editor. Before former GQ editor Jones joined in May 2023, the Standard editor\u2019s chair had similarly sat empty for more than a year and a half.<\/p>\n The source added: \u201cThere\u2019s no strategy for the website. The clicks on the website are entirely random, driven by Google News and Google Discover.\u201d They said traffic is largely dependent on sport news about Arsenal and Chelsea.<\/p>\n \u201cSo it is not a surprise that essentially the game\u2019s up for the Standard website under its current guise but it\u2019s still come as a shock and a lot of people are very upset and frightened by what\u2019s been announced.\u201d<\/p>\n