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Hasgrove plc, a pan-European marketing and communications group, has extended its public affairs network with an acquisition in London.

The group has bought Politics International in a deal that could be worth between £2.7 million and £3 million.

On completion, £1.8 million was paid, of which £1.2 million was in cash funded through debt, with the balance in shares. There is also a deferred payment based upon Politics International’s operating profit by the end of 2011. This earn-out will be satisfied in loan notes and shares.

The acquired business will now trade as part of Interel, Hasgrove’s corporate affairs division. This is the latest company to join Interel, with the acquisitions of Brussels-based consultancy Cabinet Stewart and Berlin business Claudia Conrad last year.

Hasgrove chief executive Rod Hyde said this deal gives the group a presence in the public affairs markets of Brussels, London and Washington DC.

Politics International’s founding director, Andrew Dunlop, and the other directors remain with the business.

Hasgrove, established 2004, is a communication services group with more than 350 people in its public relations, public affairs, graphic design, advertising and online marketing businesses. Its portfolio companies include Amaze, Connectpoint, the Chase, Pavilion Communication Services and Odyssey Interactive.

Politics International, which was established 16 years ago, provides strategic advice to blue chip clients in the public, private and voluntary sectors. In the year to July 2007, it reported a pre-tax profit of £373,000.

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