Premier Inn owner Whitbread has urged shareholders to reject activist hedge fund Corvex Management's demand for board representation, warning that the move could disrupt its turnaround strategy, according to a report by the Financial Times.

Corvex, led by former Carl Icahn associate Keith Meister, is Whitbread's third-largest shareholder, holding a stake of approximately 6.4% worth £270m. The hedge fund is seeking to appoint partner James Gemmel to the company's board, with shareholders due to vote on the proposal on 9 November.

Whitbread's board has criticised the activist's calls for a strategic overhaul, arguing that revisiting its five-year turnaround plan would divert resources and undermine progress.

Chief Executive Dominic Paul told the FT that Whitbread had engaged with Corvex 18 times over the past year, questioning the consistency of the hedge fund's proposals.

Corvex first disclosed its investment in December 2025 and has since pushed for Whitbread to separate its hotel operations from its property assets, arguing that the company's capital-intensive ownership model is weighing on shareholder returns.

Unlike many international hotel operators, which primarily lease or manage properties, Whitbread owns the freeholds of approximately half of its more than 850 hotels across the UK and Germany.

In May, Corvex called for a sale process, although it subsequently moderated that position in September, stating that it was no longer demanding a sale or seeking control of the company.

Whitbread has already announced plans to sell and lease back £1.5bn of property assets and exit its restaurant business as part of a restructuring programme that could affect 3,800 jobs.