TWO multi-millionaire Scottish business leaders have defended people becoming extremely rich during the pandemic following the publication of the latest Sunday Times Rich List.

Lord Willie Haughey and Sir Tom Hunter were discussing the list, which identified 171 UK billionaires, 24 more than the previous year, during the Go Radio Business Show. Ten of them are based in Scotland, the newspaper found.

According to the UK Government’s own figures, up to 14.5 million, or one in every four or five, people were in poverty before the Covid-19 pandemic hit. It is expected that this figure will have risen substantially over the last year.

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On the radio show, the pair were asked if the UK should impose a wealth tax on those who have made extensive profits during the coronavirus crisis.

Hunter, who has a net worth of £729m according to the latest rich list, argued business owners should not be held back “as long as they pay all their taxes”.

Businessman Haughey agreed, telling listeners: “The more billionaires the better as long as they are creating jobs and paying their taxes – the more the merrier.”

Hunter added that is entrepreneurship and the creation of wealth that “is what makes the world go round”.

The pair also discussed the Giving List, which shows how much money the wealthiest have donated to charities.

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Hunter told the programme the newspaper had started publishing the list after he and the chief executive of his Hunter Foundation approached them two decades ago.

“I got a bit fed up seeing my name only on the Rich List,” Hunter complained. “We are not without ego but I want to be known for what I did with my money, not the number of zeros after my name.”

He said he had given £138m to charitable causes over 20 years.