'War on Murdoch' tape may cost British minister Cable his job

British business secretary Vince Cable told undercover reporters that he had "declared war on [media magnate Rupert] Murdoch," the BBC reported on Tuesday, playing excerpts of a tape of Cable speaking.

Murdoch's News Corporation is seeking to buy out the remainder of pay-TV operator BSkyB and Cable ultimately has to decide whether the bid can proceed.

There was no immediate comment from Cable's business department.

The BBC also quoted Cable as saying he was going to win.

The BBC said the comments made it difficult for Cable to deal with the merger and raised doubts about whether he could remain in his post.

Cable is one of the best known members of the Liberal Democrats, the junior partner in the Conservative-led government which took office in May.

Finance minister George Osborne and Danny Alexander, chief secretary to the treasury, hurried into the prime minister's residence in Downing Street after the news broke. They did not answer questions from reporters.

Cable has already apologised for comments made to undercover Daily Telegraph reporters in which he discussed tensions in the governing coalition. Cable said he could quit if pushed too far.

The comments about Murdoch on the tape played by the BBC were not published in the newspaper report.

News Corp, which also owns British newspapers The Sun, News of the World, The Times and Sunday Times, wants to buy the 61% of BSkyB it does not already own for £7.8 billion ($12.2 billion) to consolidate the business it helped build.

Talking about the bid, Cable said, "I have blocked it using the powers that I have got and they are legal powers that I have got," according to the recording broadcast by the BBC.

"I can't politicise it, but from the people that know what is happening this is a big, big thing."

The European Commission on Tuesday granted unconditional approval for the bid.

Britain's communications regulator Ofcom is now examining the deal to see if it would give News Corp too much control of the media in the United Kingdom, with the focus on content types, audiences, media platforms, control of media enterprises and future developments in the media landscape.