Matt Davies, group chief executive of Halfords Group, is to take the reigns of Tesco’s UK and Ireland operations as sweeping changes are announced at the supermarket group including the closure of its Cheshunt office as well as 43 unprofitable stores across the country.

Dave Lewis, the new chief executive, added that a restructuring of the entire business would come into play, with a simplification of store management structures, Tesco Broadband and Blinkbox to TalkTalk, the closure of the company pension and a major campaign to slash prices.

The moves come despite the news that Tesco’s Christmas performance was better than expected, with like-for-like sales falling by just 0.3% during the six-weeks to January 3rd and 2.9% for the 19 weeks to January 3rd. This compared to a 5.4% slump in the previous quarter and is a better performance than announced by rival Sainsbury’s earlier this week.

In a statement ahead of an investor briefing later this morning, Mr Lewis commented: “We are seeing the benefits of listening to our customers. The investments we are making in service, availability and selectively in price are already resulting in a better shopping experience.  A broad-based improvement has built gradually through the third quarter, leading to a strong Christmas trading performance.

“I would like to thank all of my colleagues in Tesco. The unique combination of retail expertise and real passion for the customer has been an inspiration to be a part of. In difficult circumstances the team has begun the challenging task of reinvigorating our business. There is more to do but we have taken the first important steps in the right direction.

“We have some very difficult changes to make. I am very conscious that the consequences of these changes are significant for all stakeholders in our business but we are facing the reality of the situation. Our recent performance gives us confidence that when we pull together and put the customer first we can deliver the right results."