Steel saviour is named in Panama leak

THE tycoon hailed as a potential saviour of the UK steel industry was last night facing awkward questions over his tax affairs.

Sanjeev Gupta, who has launched a bid for Tata Steel including its Port Talbot works, has been named in the notorious Panama Papers.

The revelation will raise questions for the business secretary Sajid Javid, who is working to find a suitable buyer for Tata Steel’s UK assets. It is expected to shut down its sites by late June if no buyer is found.

Mr Gupta, 44, has pledged he can revive the business and save its 4,000 workers from the dole queue.

But leaked documents show that his company, Liberty House, registered its commodities operation in the tax haven of Panama two years ago.

It used the services of Mossack Fonseca – the secretive law firm at the centre of the Panama Papers leak. The commodities arm of Liberty is a key part of Mr Gupta’s £4billion-ayear business empire.

When confronted about the revelations, Liberty told the Mail it had suspended plans to set up in Panama because of the ‘increased reputational risk’ associated with the country.

The firm said there was never any intention to gain a tax advantage and Panama appealed purely as a logistics hub with its canal and regional links. It said the company had never traded or had a bank account.

But the explanation received short shrift from MPs and tax experts.

Margaret Hodge, a Labour MP who heads a cross-party committee on responsible taxation, said: ‘If he wants to enjoy the trust and earn the legitimacy to take over an important part of our industrial empire, he must be more open about his affairs.’

robert Leach, a tax lecturer, said: ‘I cannot think there is a reason to set up in Panama other than for its favourable tax regime. Panama has more brass plates than people.’

‘More brass plates than people’