Publication of Documents

Derwent Valley Holdings PLC
12 December 2006



NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION IN, INTO OR FROM THE UNITED STATES,
                           AUSTRALIA, CANADA OR JAPAN



Derwent Valley Holdings plc
London Merchant Securities plc

12 December 2006



                      PUBLICATION OF SHAREHOLDER DOCUMENTS



On 14 November 2006, Derwent Valley Holdings plc ("Derwent") and London Merchant
Securities plc ("LMS") announced that they had reached agreement on the final
terms of a recommended share for share merger of Derwent and LMS (the "
Transaction").  It is proposed that the Transaction will be effected by means of
a scheme of arrangement under section 425 of the Companies Act 1985 (the 
"Scheme").

Further to that announcement, Derwent and LMS announce that the documentation
relating to the Transaction will be posted today.  LMS Shareholders will
receive, amongst other documents, the Scheme Document published by LMS in
connection with the Scheme, together with a Prospectus published by Derwent in
connection with the New Derwent Shares being offered pursuant to the
Transaction.  Derwent Shareholders will receive, amongst other documents, the
Derwent Shareholder Circular in relation to the Transaction, together with a
copy of the Prospectus.

As set out in the documentation, the Derwent Extraordinary General Meeting will
be held to allow the Derwent Shareholders to vote on the resolution required to
approve and implement the Transaction, and two shareholder meetings, namely the
Scheme Meeting and the LMS Extraordinary General Meeting, will be held to allow
the LMS Shareholders to vote on the proposed resolutions required to implement
the Scheme.  The key dates for these meetings are as follow:

Latest time for receipt of proxy forms for the Derwent                        10.30 a.m. on 6 January 2007
Extraordinary General Meeting


Derwent Extraordinary General Meeting                                         10.30 a.m. on 8 January 2007


Latest time for receipt of proxy forms for the LMS Scheme Meeting             11.00 a.m. on 8 January 2007


Latest time for receipt of proxy forms for the LMS Extraordinary              11.15 a.m. on 8 January 2007
General Meeting


LMS Scheme Meeting                                                           11.00 a.m. on 10 January 2007


LMS Extraordinary General Meeting                                            11.15 a.m. on 10 January 2007


Last day for dealings in and for registration of transfers of, and                         30 January 2007
disablement in CREST of, LMS Shares


Effective Date of the Scheme                                                               1 February 2007


Issue of New Derwent Shares and commencement of dealings in New                            1 February 2007
Derwent Shares


Copies of the Scheme Document, the Derwent Shareholder Circular and the
Prospectus have been submitted to the UK Listing Authority and will shortly be
available for inspection by the public during normal business hours any weekday
(public holidays excepted) at the UK Listing Authority's Document Viewing
Facility, which is situated at:


The Financial Services Authority
25 The North Colonnade
Canary Wharf
London
E14 5HS
Tel: [phone]

Copies of the Derwent Shareholder Circular, the Scheme Document and the
Prospectus will shortly be available for inspection by Derwent Shareholders at
the offices of Derwent Valley Holdings plc, 25 Savile Row, London, W1S 2ER
during normal business hours on any weekday (Saturdays, Sundays and public
holidays excepted).  Copies of the Shareholder Circular, the Scheme Document and
the Prospectus are available for inspection at the offices of Slaughter and May,
One Bunhill Row, London, EC1Y 8YY during normal business hours on any weekday
(Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays excepted).

Copies of the Scheme Document will shortly be available for inspection by LMS
Shareholders at the offices of London Merchant Securities plc, Carlton House, 33
Robert Adam Street, London, W1U 3HR during normal business hours on any weekday
(Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays excepted).  Copies of the Scheme
Document are available for inspection at the offices of Clifford Chance LLP, 10
Upper Bank Street, London, E14 5JJ during normal business hours on any weekday
(Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays excepted).

Completion of the Transaction remains subject to the satisfaction or, if
permitted, waiver of the conditions to the Transaction set out in the Scheme
Document, including, amongst other things, the approval of the Transaction by
the requisite majorities of Derwent Shareholders and LMS Shareholders at the
relevant meetings and the sanction of the Scheme by the Court.

Terms defined in the Prospectus have the same meaning in this announcement.



Enquiries:

DERWENT

Derwent Valley Holdings plc                                  [phone]
John Burns
Simon Silver
Christopher Odom

UBS Limited (financial adviser and broker to Derwent)        [phone]
Liam Beere
Tim Guest

Financial Dynamics (public relations adviser to Derwent)     [phone]
Stephanie Highett
Dido Laurimore

LMS

London Merchant Securities plc                               [phone]
Robbie Rayne
Nick Friedlos
Martin Pexton

N M Rothschild & Sons Limited (lead financial adviser to LMS)[phone]
Alex Midgen
Duncan Wilmer

JPMorgan Cazenove (joint financial adviser and broker to LMS)[phone]
Michael Wentworth-Stanley
Richard Cotton
Bronson Albery

Brunswick (public relations adviser to LMS)                  [phone]
Simon Sporborg
Nina Coad



UBS Limited is acting exclusively for Derwent and no one else in connection with
the Transaction and will not be responsible to anyone other than Derwent for
providing the protections afforded to the clients of UBS Limited nor for
providing advice in relation to the Transaction or any other matter referred to
herein.

N M Rothschild & Sons Limited is acting exclusively for LMS in connection with
the Transaction and will not be responsible to anyone other than LMS for
providing the protections afforded to the clients of N M Rothschild & Sons
Limited nor for providing advice in relation to the Transaction or any other
matter referred to herein.

JPMorgan Cazenove is acting exclusively for LMS in connection with the
Transaction and will not be responsible to anyone other than LMS for providing
the protections afforded to the clients of JPMorgan Cazenove nor for providing
advice in relation to the Transaction or any other matter referred to herein.

The release, publication or distribution of this announcement in jurisdictions
other than the United Kingdom may be restricted by law and therefore any persons
who are subject to the laws of any jurisdiction other than the United Kingdom
should inform themselves about, and observe, any applicable requirements. This
announcement has been prepared for the purposes of complying with English law
and the City Code and the information disclosed may not be the same as that
which would have been disclosed if this announcement had been prepared in
accordance with the laws of jurisdictions outside of England.

This announcement does not constitute an offer to sell or invitation to purchase
any securities or the solicitation of any vote or approval in any jurisdiction.
LMS Shareholders are advised to read carefully the formal documentation in
relation to the Transaction once it has been despatched.

In particular, this announcement is not an offer of securities for sale in the
US and the New Derwent Shares and Loan Notes have not been, and will not be,
registered under the US Securities Act of 1933 (the "Securities Act") or under
the securities law of any state, district or other jurisdiction of the US,
Australia, Canada or Japan and no regulatory clearance in respect of the New
Derwent Shares and Loan Notes has been, or will be, applied for in any
jurisdiction other than the UK. It is expected that the New Derwent Shares will
be issued in reliance upon the exemption from the registration requirements of
the Securities Act provided by Section 3(a)(10) thereof.

Dealing Disclosure Requirements

Under the provisions of Rule 8.3 of the City Code, if any person is, or becomes,
"interested" (directly or indirectly) in 1 per cent. or more of any class of "
relevant securities" of Derwent or LMS, all "dealings" in any "relevant
securities" of that company (including by means of an option in respect of, or a
derivative referenced to, any such "relevant securities") must be publicly
disclosed by no later than 3.30 p.m. on the London business day following the
date of the relevant transaction. This requirement will continue until the
Effective Date or until the date on which the Scheme lapses or is otherwise
withdrawn or on which the "offer period" otherwise ends (or, if Derwent elects
to effect the Transaction by way of a takeover offer, until the date on which
the offer becomes, or is declared, unconditional as to acceptances, lapses or is
otherwise withdrawn or on which the "offer period" otherwise ends). If two or
more persons act together pursuant to an agreement or understanding, whether
formal or informal, to acquire an "interest" in "relevant securities" of Derwent
or LMS, they will be deemed to be a single person for the purpose of Rule 8.3.

Under the provisions of Rule 8.1 of the City Code, all "dealings" in "relevant
securities" of Derwent or LMS by Derwent or LMS, or by any of their respective "
associates", must be disclosed by no later than 12.00 noon on the London
business day following the date of the relevant transaction.

A disclosure table, giving details of the companies in whose "relevant
securities" "dealings" should be disclosed, and the number of such securities in
issue, can be found on the Panel's website at www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk.

"Interests in securities" arise, in summary, when a person has long economic
exposure, whether conditional or absolute, to changes in the price of
securities. In particular, a person will be treated as having an "interest" by
virtue of the ownership or control of securities, or by virtue of any option in
respect of, or derivative referenced to, securities.

Terms in quotation marks are defined in the City Code, which can also be found
on the Panel's website. If you are in any doubt as to whether or not you are
required to disclose a "dealing" under Rule 8, you should consult the Panel.


                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange