Asda bosses have told MPs that workers should not be concerned over the scale of the group's debt despite criticisms from unions and politicians over its accounting structures.

The group's leadership team was quizzed today by MPs on Parliament’s Business and Trade Select Committee, which is examining the use of private equity in the retail sector. They said there were "no gaps" in its finances and that no-one should be concerned about its liabilities, despite confirming it has £4.2bn of debts on its books.

Asda was taken over in 2021 by billionaire brothers Mohsin and Zuber Issa, who are behind petrol forecourt firm EG Group and private equity partners TDR Capital.

Mohsin Issa today shrugged off suggestions there was money unaccounted for in its accounts.

“I can assure you there is no gap in the accounts signed off by our auditors,” he said.

The company confirmed it has about £4.2 billion worth of debt across its different registered companies in the UK.

When asked if he had any worries about its degree of debt, Mr Issa said: “No, I don’t.

“What I would say is that the debt leverage at the start of the year was at 4.2 times, that has gone down to 3.8 times and that trajectory is to go down even further by the end of this year.

“At the same time, we are investing in colleague pay, customer pricing and loyalty. The business in highly cash generative.”

Asda employs some 151,000 people across the UK.

Liam Byrne MP, chair of the select committee, told the retailer he was worried about the “very large but unclear amount of debt” he claimed the firm is facing.

Michael Gleeson, chief financial officer at Asda, said a portion of its debt will face fresh borrowing rates next year and highlighted that the business is therefore expecting a further £30m worth of interest costs.

The finance boss also defended the use of holding companies based in Jersey within its accounting, stressing that it pays UK corporation tax on all its operations.

He added: “Companies registered in Jersey can, in the longer term, facilitate corporate restructurings more quickly than can happen in England and Wales.”

He also said registering the companies in Jersey could reduce its exposure to stamp duty upon selling any parts of its business, adding that this process can also take place through UK-based companies, but will be a slower process.

Earlier, the GMB union told MPs it has concerns that high “debt levels and the interest payments” at Asda could impact workers in its supermarkets.

Nadine Houghton, national officer for the union, told the select committee: “From an Asda perspective, we see a dramatic drop in hours available for shop floor workers, which is intensely increasing the pressure on them, their mental health.

“We’ve seen cuts to the cleaning contract, so we have concerns over the level of cleanliness and maintenance.

“Violent attacks on our members are up and there are unrealistic productivity measures.

“Really, I think this is a result of the fact that private equity have to pay this back somehow – one of the ways we believe they’re seeking to do this in Asda is through some of these examples we are seeing from the shopfloor.”

Mohsin and Zuber Issa started out with a single petrol station forecourt in Bury more than 20 years ago. According to the latest Sunday Times Rich List, the brothers saw their wealth rise by £302m to £5.05bn over the last year.