BHS’s £1 buyer must chip in for pensions, says Sir Shifty

SIR Philip Green is demanding that the controversial businessman who bought BHS from him for £1 is forced to help bail out the retailer’s pension scheme.

The retail tycoon has so far failed to honour a commitment made more than six months ago to rescue the BHS scheme, which has a £571million deficit and around 20,000 members.

Last month, the Pensions Regulator issued a warning notice to the billionaire, nicknamed Sir Shifty, after complaining that he had failed to come up with a ‘comprehensive and credible’ offer.

If a settlement is not reached, the watchdog can use its legal powers to force him to pay up.

But, according to The Guardian, Sir Philip has now stipulated that Dominic Chappell must also make a payment into the BHS scheme. He has stressed that this must be a condition of any rescue deal.

BHS collapsed in April with the loss of 11,000 jobs, just over a year after Sir Philip sold the business for £1 to Mr Chappell – a thrice-bankrupt former racing driver.

The regulator has already begun legal proceedings, and is understood to be seeking around £350million from Sir Philip and up to £17million from Mr Chappell.

Sir Philip declined to comment. Mr Chappell said he fulfilled all his duties as a director of BHS and ‘at no stage did we trade immorally’.