Letter to Liberty Shareholder

British Land Co PLC
17 July 2000

The British Land Company PLC


               LETTER TO LIBERTY INTERNATIONAL PLC SHAREHOLDERS

Attached is the full text of a letter, sent today by John Ritblat, Chairman of
The  British  Land  Company  PLC  ('British  Land'),  to  certain  of  Liberty
International's largest shareholders.


Enquiries

British Land
John Ritblat, Chairman                            Tel: [phone]
John Weston Smith, Finance Director

Morgan Stanley
John Carrafiell                                   Tel: [phone]
William Vereker

Lazard
Marcus Agius                                      Tel: [phone]
William Rucker

Deutsche Bank (broker to British Land)            Tel: [phone]
Antony Macwhinie
David Church







Dear Shareholder,

                       REJECT THE REPURCHASE RESOLUTION

On  24th  July, 2000 at an Extraordinary General Meeting of your  Company  you
will  be  asked to approve the purchase by Liberty International of  29.8  per
cent.  of  its own shares from Standard Bank and Liberty Group, the  Company's
two  largest  shareholders. The purchase price proposed is  575p  per  Liberty
International ordinary share and, by proposing an early and increased  interim
dividend  payment, your Directors have raised the effective  consideration  to
585.25p per share.

This proposal was made by the Board of Liberty International in reaction to an
announcement  on  5th June 2000 that British Land had agreed to  purchase  the
29.8  per cent. stake for 550p per ordinary share in cash or a combination  of
cash and shares which is currently valued at 523p, conditional on approval  by
Standard  Bank's shareholders. The enabling EGM of Standard Bank was adjourned
to await the outcome of your Company's forthcoming shareholder vote.

                             WHY YOU SHOULD SAY NO

We  believe  the reasons why you should vote against the relevant  resolutions
are clear:

1.    It  is  inequitable  for just two shareholders to  receive  preferential
treatment.  If  Liberty International is to buy back shares at  a  significant
premium,  then  all shareholders should have the opportunity to  tender  their
shares at that price.

2.   The figure of 585.25p per share represents:

a premium of over 25 per cent. compared to Liberty International's share price
immediately before British Land's proposed purchase was announced. In the four
months   prior  to  the  announcement  Liberty  International's  shares   were
consistently trading below 450p per share;

-     a  premium  over British Land's proposed purchase price of up  to  550p,
being the only binding third party offer resulting from what we understand was
an extensive marketing of the 29.8 per cent. stake; and

-     a  premium to the pricing in recent transactions where 100 per cent.  of
comparable quoted property companies were being acquired.

3.   Even after allowing for the revaluation in the Interim Statement, the buy
back is at best NAV neutral when FRS13, deferred tax and purchasers' costs are
taken  into  account.  Accordingly, there is a real risk  that  the  Company's
share price would fall significantly.

                                       
                                       
  LIBERTY INTERNATIONAL'S PROPOSAL IS INEQUITABLE AND DISADVANTAGEOUS TO YOU.
     WE BELIEVE IT IS IN YOUR BEST INTERESTS TO VOTE AGAINST THE RELEVANT
                            RESOLUTION AT THE EGM.

                               Yours faithfully,
                                 John Ritblat



This  letter  has  been  prepared by, and is the sole  responsibility  of  The
British Land Company PLC ('British Land') and has been approved solely for the
purposes of Section 57 of the Financial Services Act 1986 by Morgan Stanley  &
Co.  Limited ('Morgan Stanley') and Lazard Brothers & Co., Limited ('Lazard'),
which  are  regulated  in  the United Kingdom by the  Securities  and  Futures
Authority Limited.  Morgan Stanley and Lazard are acting for British Land  and
no-one  else  in connection with the contents of this letter and will  not  be
responsible  to  anyone other than British Land for providing the  protections
afforded to customers of Morgan Stanley and Lazard nor for providing advice in
relation to the contents of this letter.