THE president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, has been accused of obstructing an investigation into Luxembourg-based corporate tax avoidance schemes that were set up when he was prime minister of the grand duchy.

The European parliament is looking into deals that have allowed multinationals to avoid paying billions of pounds in corporate taxes to countries including Britain.

Juncker, 60, was finance minister of Luxembourg from 1989 until 2009 and its prime minister from 1995 to 2013. Details of the schemes emerged last year in what became known as the “LuxLeaks scandal”.

MEPs on the special committee set up to investigate the arrangements have accused the commission of refusing to divulge key evidence. “It is shameless and illegal to withhold this and it will further