Struggling holiday firm in £3.4m sell-off

The 172-year-old group said the sale of Thomas Cook North America, made up of Thomas Cook Canada and Thomas Cook USA, would be complete by May 31.

Thomas Cook, which has struggled over the last two years with a slump in sales that has forced it to renegotiate bank loans and sell businesses, said the proceeds of the deal would be used to lighten its £788m debt load.

The group, which is planning a cull of its stores in Yorkshire, aims to boost profits by more than £334m in the next three years by moving more of its operations online and further cutting costs.

Yorkshire is seeing many of the cuts with Thomas Cook planning to close 30 out of 102 of its Thomas Cook or Co-operative Travel stores in the region, which is expected to lead to over 150 job losses.

Harriet Green, chief executive, joined the group last year from Leeds-based Premier Farnell.