Sir David Murray donates £1.5m to his new charity

given to the Murray Foundation, set up earlier this year to help several causes close to the family’s heart including those supporting amputees and cancer charities.

Turnover at the group, which owns a number of companies including metals, wine, IT and property, rose by 2 per cent to £69.5m last year.

Last year Murray Capital received a “minded to” planning permission decision for 1,300 houses at its Edinburgh Garden District site in west Edinburgh.

The decision was called in by the Scottish Government with the outcome due at the start of next year.

The group is also hopeful of gaining planning consent for its commercial site at the International Business Gateway near Edinburgh Airport. The development application comprises a 525-room hotel, 200 residential units, retail and leisure facilities and offices.

Murray Metals, the group’s main trading entity, had what was described as a “good year”, delivering a profit of £1.18m, due mainly to the plate and profiling business, which saw an upturn in sales and margins in a more stable steel market.

Murray said the family’s business continued to take a long-term approach.

He said 2017 trading so far had been “strong and consistent” across the portfolio and that the years ahead were expected to be profitable ones.

Staff numbers fell to 250 from 596, reflecting the disposal of business interests.