An actress and leading Corbynista who has railed against the 'super rich' has a company registered with a tax planning accountant.

Maxine Peake, who starred on the BBC drama about Rochdale Three Girls, is the sole director of Flat Cap Limited which boasts assets of £145,000, according to documents lodged at Companies House.

The business is registered with the accountants Creasey Alexander & Co, an accountancy which boasts of its tax planning expertise on its website.

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Ms Peake, pictured in the Labour election broadcast where she railed against the super rich being handed tax breaks despite being paid through a firm registered with a tax planning accountant

A spokesman for Ms Peake, pictured in the Labour election broadcast, said she does not benefit from the arrangements and stands by her comments in the video

It was reported that she uses the company to be paid for her acting, directing and writing in an arrangement which can slash tax bills.

There is no suggestion Ms Peake has done anything wrong, but some will think it is hypocritical given her strident views on taxation.

The revelation comes after the actress – who used to be a member of the Communist Party – fronted an election broadcast for Jeremy Corbyn's party.

HOW ACTORS CAN USE COMPANIES TO SLASH BILLS Many self employed people, including actors, set up 'personal service companies' as a vehicle for them to be paid. Doing so can make being self employed administratively more straight forward. But it can also offer legal tax advantages as it means pay is not taxed at source. Depending how the company is operated, it can mean the user does not have to pay class 1 National Insurance contributions. Money drawn down as a dividend rather than salary is not subject to income tax. Advertisement

In it she accused the Conservative Party of lonely looking after the 'privileged few' and urged voters to back Labour.

She says: 'The Tories have spent the past seven years giving the super-rich tax hand-outs worth tens of billions of pounds, while working families are set to be on average over £1,400 a year worse off.'

She adds: 'The Tories want to use Brexit to turn Britain into a low wage tax haven for big business, putting millions of jobs at risk.

'Labour is the only party which can be trusted to put the interests of working people first in the Brexit negotiations.'

A spokesman for the star told The Sun last night that 'operating through a limited company is the most administratively efficient means of contracting'.

He insisted there was 'zero benefit' to her being paid via a limited company.

And he added: 'She stands by her message in the Labour Party's political broadcast and has absolutely nothing to hide'.

The Mail Online has contacted Ms Peake's representative for a comment.

Ms Peake has starred in a string of leading TV shows including the BBC's Silk