Feb 18 (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

-British healthcare property developer Assura has

rejected a 1.56 billion pound ($1.97 billion) acquisition bid

from KKR.

- Two of Britain's biggest banks Barclays ( JJCTF ) and

NatWest ( NWG ) are to remove climate targets from their annual

bonus schemes for senior executives, reflecting a wider shift in

the business world to drop environmental and diversity measures

linked to pay.

The Guardian

-British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has urged U.S.

President Donald Trump to provide a U.S. "backstop" to a

European peacekeeping force in Ukraine, saying it is the only

way to deter Russia from attacking the country again.

- British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has not ruled out

holding a parliamentary vote on committing UK troops to a

peacekeeping role in Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire, after

calls from some within Labour and the Lib Dems.

The Telegraph

- The UK Supreme Court on Monday rejected a move by finance

minister Rachel Reeves to intervene in a landmark case on car

loan mis-selling.

-Castle Water, which was co-founded by Graham Edwards, the

Tory treasurer, has issued a winding-up petition against Pret A

Manger over allegations of unpaid bills.

Sky News

-Jonathan Reynolds, Secretary of State for Business and

Trade, will discuss Jingye Group's request for a bailout for the

Scunthorpe-based steelmaker with the Chinese group's boss Li

Huiming on Tuesday.

-Britain's competition regulator said on Monday that Topps

Tiles' ( TPTJF ) 9 million pound ($11.34 million) acquisition of

CTD Tiles could reduce competition, limiting deals and product

choices for customers and businesses in parts of England and

Scotland.

($1 = 0.7937 pounds)

(Compiled by Bengaluru newsroom)