KPMG has pointed the finger of blame at the directors of Carillion in its defence to a £1.3bn lawsuit that claims the Big Four firm’s audit negligence led to massive losses for the failed outsourcer’s creditors.

The £1.3bn High Court claim was filed against KPMG in November by the Official Receiver — part of the Insolvency Service — which is acting as liquidator to Carillion and on behalf of its creditors.