Sorrell finally pulls plug on United.(Grey London appoints Jim Kelly, Robert Campbell and Richard Huntington)(Brief article)

Beleaguered London office closes as accounts and some staff are absorbed by sisterWPP agency Grey.

The WPP chief executive, Sir Martin Sorrell, has thrown in the towel on his United network's ailing London office and is closing the agency.

Following weeks of negotiations, its few remaining clients will now transfer to Grey London. Jim Kelly and Robert Campbell, who took the reins of the struggling agency a year ago, will not be joining Grey. Their 25 per cent stake in the agency becomes defunct.

A number of the agency's other staff, including its planning director, Richard Huntington, and the deputy managing director, Rhona Cairns, have been offered jobs at Grey, but it is unknown if anyone has accepted.

The agency's remaining staff, about 30 in number, will be made redundant.

Laurence Mellman, United's chief operating officer, said: 'Because of the recent decline in fortunes of the London agency, we thought the best thing we could do was to migrate the remaining clients to Grey along with some of the key staff.'