Proposals of Holding Company

Whitbread PLC 5 January 2001 Not for release, publication or distribution in or into the United States of America, Canada, Japan, Australia or the Netherlands Recommendation of proposals to introduce a new holding company for Whitbread by way of Scheme of Arrangement and update on current trading The Board of Whitbread PLC ('Whitbread') announces that a circular to shareholders has been posted recommending proposals to establish Whitbread Holdings PLC as the holding company of the Whitbread Group by way of a scheme of arrangement (the 'Scheme') under section 425 of the Companies Act 1985. The Board believes that the introduction of a new holding company for the Whitbread Group will provide greater flexibility in the structuring of the continuing businesses of the Group and in realising the value of the Pubs and Bars division. In particular, the implementation of the Scheme at this stage will allow for an earlier and more efficient return of such value to Whitbread shareholders. A Court Meeting followed immediately by an Extraordinary General Meeting will be held on 30 January 2001 for shareholders to approve the proposals. Listing particulars relating to the introduction to the Official List of Whitbread Holdings PLC are available for inspection and are obtainable on request, by application to the Company's Registrars, Lloyds TSB Registrars of The Causeway, Worthing, West Sussex BN99 6DA (telephone: 0800 096 4290). The following statement appears in the Listing Particulars: 'The Company would normally issue a statement only later in January once the financial results of the important Christmas and New Year trading period are known. Since the half year end, trading has been satisfactory in the context of market conditions which have been affected by the disruption of the transport infrastructure and flooding. However, the important trading period of Christmas and the New Year will have a significant influence on the outturn for the year and the financial results for this period are not yet available. The Company will issue a trading statement later in January covering this important period. The prospects of the UK leisure market remain good and the Board believes that the future Whitbread businesses are well positioned in this market.' Enquiries: Whitbread PLC David Reed +44 (0)20 7615 1324 Jeremy Probert +44 (0)20 7615 1445 Dresdner Kleinwort Benson +44 (0)20 7623 8000 David Barclay Nigel Binks Gavin Anderson & Company +44 (0)20 7457 2345 Chris Salt Laura Hickman Kleinwort Benson Limited ('Dresdner Kleinwort Benson'), which is regulated in the United Kingdom by the Securities and Futures Authority Limited, is acting for Whitbread and for no one else in relation to the matters discussed herein and will not be responsible for anyone other than Whitbread for providing the protections afforded to its customers or for providing advice in relation to the matters discussed herein.

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Whitbread (WTB)
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