Interbrew is considering selling its Whitbread breweries instead of its Bass beer operations as one of a variety of possibilities it is contemplating.
The controversial move would be a high-risk option of defying the trade secretary, Stephen Byers, who has demanded the Bass sell-off on competition grounds.
But Interbrew’s advisers suggest the Belgian company could be in a position to seek an order overturning the British government’s regulatory review if it sells the Whitbread breweries.
The Guardian 12/01/01 page 22
