An £11.2m acquisition of eight Scottish newspaper titles by Johnston Press has been cleared by the Office of Fair Trading.

The OFT has decided, on the information currently available, not to refer the purchase to the Competition Commission under the provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002.

Johnston Press recently agreed to buy eight weekly titles in Scotland from Archant, including the paid-for Ellon Times & East Gordon Advertiser, the Buchan Observer and the Fraserburgh Herald, as well as the free Extra, which is distributed around Glasgow, Ayrshire, Lanarkshire and Paisley.

The sale was conditional on clearance from the regulatory authorities and on completion the titles become part of the Johnston Newspapers (Scotland) Division.

When the deal was struck, Johnston Press chief executive Tim Bowdler said the portfolio fitted in well with the company’s existing titles in their respective areas.