The Sunday Tribune group will receive a welcome fillip next week, when the company, which has been without a managing director for two months, gets the services of Jim Farrelly.

Mr Farrelly, who wrote the seminal book, Who's Who in Irish Politics, an invaluable guide to public affairs, is steeped in the tradition of Independent News & Media. He most recently worked as managing director of the Kerryman, one of Independent's flagship titles.

In fact, it was while at the Kerryman that Mr Farrelly became involved in a plan to buy the Kingdom newspaper, which has a circulation of 5,000.

The Independent was trying to buy the newspaper without triggering the interest of the Competition Authority.

Independent's legal adviser, Mr Donal Roche, suggested an idea to buy 25 per cent of the Kingdom and try to "keep the value of the newspaper low".

The Independent has lent the Sunday Tribune large amounts of money, despite the fact that the publication competes with the hugely successful Sunday Independent. However, if the Tribune's other shareholders were to sell in the future, it would be interesting to see what any possible potential buyer would think of having such a strong minor partner involved. It will also be interesting to see how Mr Farrelly uses his sharp business acumen to boost the Tribune's performance, which has been less than spectacular in recent years.