The boss of a Newham training company failed to explain what £2.5 million of public funding was spent on. 

Shakar Habib, 28, was the sole director of Vista Training Solutions Limited – a business which provided training to students through apprenticeships and enterprise schemes. 

The business went into liquidation in February 2020 and an investigation by the Insolvency Service revealed that Habib could not account for nearly £3.5 million from the company’s accounts. 

The investigation also revealed that the company owed £2.5 million to the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), which had provided most of Vista Training Solutions’ funding. 

Habib had failed to keep adequate company accounts and records from April 2019 onwards were missing. 

Investigators were therefore unable to verify whether £3.5 million of payments from the company’s bank accounts during its final year of trading were legitimate company expenses. 

The Insolvency Service said liquidators were also unable to account for £525,000 in assets due to lack of financial records. 

Habib is now subject of a six-year directorship disqualification. 

It prevents him from becoming involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company, without the permission of the court. 

Marc Symons, deputy head of investigations at the Insolvency Service, said: “Shakar Habib disregarded his legal duty to keep accounting records.

“His ban should be a stark warning to other rogue directors that we will act to protect the public from those who abuse taxpayers’ money.”