Caledonia battles break-up plan

THE board of Caledonia Investments, the £600m investment trust, is expected to face renewed pressure today to open talks with rebel investors plotting to liquidate the company.

Caledonia, controlled by Scotland's Cayzer family, last week rejected a proposal to restructure the business that would have involved disposing of assets and returning cash to shareholders.

Directors said the offer, coming from the family faction at odds with chairman Peter Buckley, undervalued the company. Buckley and his family allies control just under half of Caledonia's shares. Shareholders attending Caledonia's annual general meeting in London this afternoon are expected to demand more details of the plan.

Four financiers are behind the restructuring proposal - Sir John Craven, the former Deutsche Morgan Grenfell chief executive, Nick Morrell, one-time head of Lonrho, Simon Murray, former chief executive of Hutchison Whampoa, and Stanislas Yassukovich, the former Merrill Lynch chairman.

They had intended to make their plan public before today's AGM, but may now be forced to call an extraordinary general meeting. However, City sources said it was unlikely the would-be bidders would launch a hostile bid.

A Caledonia spokesman said it was business as usual ahead of today's meeting and that directors had no reason to reconsider the rebels' proposal.