Oct 19 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

The Times

- Britain's leading luxury and fashion retailers including the White Company and Paul Smith have written to the chancellor warning him that abolishing tax-free shopping for tourists will be a "hammer blow" for their industry. https://bit.ly/3m0eJcQ

- Honda Motor Co has stopped selling new diesel cars, with the last vehicles expected to be out of dealerships within a few weeks. https://bit.ly/3lTYZaY

The Guardian

- Toy retailer Hamleys is shedding more than a quarter of its workforce in London as the health crisis prompts shoppers to shun the capital's world-famous shopping district. https://bit.ly/35cmplq

- The supply of food to care homes, schools, hospitals and prisons is at risk unless the government steps in to support struggling wholesalers, the British chancellor, Rishi Sunak, has been warned. https://bit.ly/3m3JZYp

The Telegraph

- Facebook Inc could face a huge privacy fine after its chief European data watchdog launched investigations into how Instagram exposed the contact details of millions of children. https://bit.ly/37jojTK

- British security company G4S Plc stepped up its defence against the "opportunistic" and "very highly leveraged" GardaWorld in the latest salvo of the hostile takeover battle for the FTSE 250 security firm. https://bit.ly/3m3KdyJ

Sky News

- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and senior minister Michael Gove who is in charge of no-deal planning - are to hold talks with business leaders, urging them to step up their efforts. https://bit.ly/37e3Hwm

- Britain's RSA Insurance Group is working with headhunters on a search to replace Martin Scicluna. https://bit.ly/2T9iMH2

The Independent

- Britain's pharmaceutical industry is appealing to Boris Johnson to strike a swift side-deal with Brussels to avoid delays and shortages of medicines if he crashes the UK out of the EU in a no-deal Brexit at the end of this year. https://bit.ly/2IAwz7A

(Compiled by Bengaluru newsroom)