Mitie has agreed to a £3.1bn takeover by rival facilities management firm OCS Group, bringing to an end nearly four decades as a London-listed company and making it the latest in a lengthening list of UK firms to leave the stock market this year. The board of the government contractor, which counts defence, health and immigration among its clients, has recommended shareholders accept the deal, coming just weeks after ministers signalled a push towards insourcing public services rather than outsourcing.

Under the terms of the deal, Mitie shareholders will receive 221.6p a share in cash, a 44.7% premium on Monday's closing price, sending the shares up 41% to a record high on Tuesday. Mitie, founded in 1987, employs 84,000 staff, while OCS, owned by private equity group Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, has 135,000 staff across the UK, Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East; the combined group is expected to complete in the first quarter of 2027. The deal follows Mitie's longstanding chief executive Phil Bentley announcing plans to step down in March 2027, and comes shortly after reports that the firm was investigating allegations of racism and other hate speech among staff at immigration removal centres.