BOSSES who refuse to appear before parliamentary committees must face criminal charges and a fine, Labour demanded yesterday.

Shadow Commons leader Chris Bryant said that Britain’s most “destructively powerful people” had regularly dodged calls to answer questions from MPs.

News Corp baron Rupert Murdoch, Sports Direct tycoon Mike Ashley and most recently former BHS owner Sir Philip Green all evaded scrutiny until they were formally summoned, while Craft Foods chief executive Irene Rosenfeld point-blank refused to answer questions about her company’s buyout of Cadbury and got away with it.

“Surely that is not just a clear contempt of Parliament, but a contempt of the British public as well,” Mr Bryant said during the weekly Commons business questions.

“Our constituents want us to hold the powerful to account and we should not be shy of doing so.

“Some people think our powers are unclear and witnesses are beginning to call our bluff so we have to do something.”

A joint committee on parliamentary privilege recommended in 2013 that there should be new legislation mandating the arrest and fining of high-profile public figures who snub MPs.

“The committee said doing nothing was not an option but that is exactly what the government has done — absolutely nothing,” Mr Bryant added.

“It is time for us to make it a criminal offence to fail to appear or refuse to appear, without reasonable excuse, before a committee of this House.”

Commons Leader Chris Grayling agreed that refusals were unacceptable and offered cross-party talks to find a solution.