Boots has been sold for nearly £7bn to the Canadian family that owns Primark.

The high street pharmacy chain has been acquired by the Weston clan, who also own stakes in Associated British Foods, which owns Primark, the budget clothing retailer.

Private equity firm Sycamore Partners and Stefano Pessina, an Italian businessman, had controlled the company for a number of years before deciding to sell the business.

The Weston family's Wittington Investments will have day-to-day control of the 177-year-old company but the deal is also backed by Canada's Fairfax Financial.

Under the terms of the deal, Wittington will acquire Boots' retail operations in the UK and Ireland, Boots Opticians, No7 Beauty Company and its Thailand and franchised businesses.

Sycamore and Mr Pessina and his family will retain ownership of the Boots Group's other operations, Farmacias Benavides in Mexico and Alliance Healthcare Deutschland in Germany.

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