A complicated scheme involves paying the actors' salaries to a UK company, which transfers the money to a trust in Mauritius, and on via Mauritius companies, until it comes back to the actors in the form of loans.

Three stars of hit BBC sitcom Mrs Brown's Boys diverted more than £2m into an offshore tax-avoidance scheme, Paradise Papers documents show.

Patrick Houlihan and Martin and Fiona Delany transferred their fees into companies in Mauritius and sent money back as loans.

Similar tax avoidance schemes have been subject to investigation and challenges by HMRC in recent years.

The actors have not responded to requests for comment. Roy Lyness, who put the stars in touch with the advisers behind the set-up, was the accountant behind the similar K2 tax avoidance scheme used by comedian Jimmy Carr.

Read our full story here: Mrs Brown's Boys stars 'diverted £2m in offshore tax dodge'

Tax expert Andrew Smith tells the BBC that criminal prosecutions are unlikely to arise against Appleby, the law firm at the heart of the leak.

The shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, will address the issue in this afternoon's Commons session. He is expected to speak at 15:30.

Image source, Getty Images

Britain's tax authority the HMRC has requested to look at the Paradise Papers in full, the prime minister's spokesman has said.

"It is important to point out that holding investments offshore is not an automatic sign of wrongdoing, but HMRC has requested to see the papers urgently so it can look into any allegations," the spokesman told reporters.

Image source, Getty Images

The Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has called for "real change" to combat tax evasion on what he called "an industrial scale".

Speaking at the CBI conference in London, Mr Corbyn reiterated calls for a register of offshore companies and trusts and said Labour was looking at plans to impose a withholding tax on companies or individuals abusing the system.

Here's the full excerpt from his speech:

The shocking revelations from the Paradise Papers today, yet again of widespread tax avoidance and evasion on an industrial scale must lead to decisive action and real change.

It is by no means all big businesses but these actions by a few undermine trust in all businesses.

And businesses are the victim too, not just reputationally but financially.

Those businesses that play by the rules and pay the taxes they owe are being undercut by those who don’t.

The vital revenues government needs to fund an industrial strategy, good infrastructure and the world class education system we aspire to; these things can only be delivered by fair taxation.

So while we mustn’t tarnish all businesses by the actions of the few, we also have a duty to come down hard on those who are avoiding the responsibilities and give HM Revenue & Customs the resources it needs.

As our Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell has set out this morning, we need a full public inquiry into tax avoidance and evasion, on and offshore, a register of companies and trusts, and who benefits from them, and a new tax enforcement unit in HMRC and an end to public contracts for companies abusing the system.

And we will look at using a withholding tax where individuals or companies are involved in abusing the system and end public contracts for companies engaged in abusive tax avoidance.

Please understand the public anger and consternation at the scale of tax avoidance revealed yet again today. We are talking about tens of billions that are effectively being leached from our vital public services by a super-rich elite that holds the taxation system and the rest of us in contempt. We must take action now to put an end to this socially damaging and extortionately costly scandal.

Image source, Sibur

Russian energy firm Sibur has commented on the Paradise Papers revelations that mention it in connection with US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross.

The papers show he retained an interest in Navigator Holdings, a company shipping oil and gas for Sibur. Two major Sibur shareholders have been sanctioned by the US:

Sibur said that since Western sanctions were imposed on one of its shareholders in 2014, the company's business partners had made all necessary checks for sanctions violations and none were found.

In an interview with BBC economics editor Kamal Ahmed, Donald Trump's commerce secretary Wilbur Ross has responded to reports from the Paradise Papers about his business links to Russian figures who are currently under US sanctions.

Mr Ross says: "I think the media has made a lot more out of it than it deserves.

"First of all the company in question, Sibur, is a very major hydrocarbon company.

"Its commercial relationship with Navigator Holdings is simply that Navigator charters some vessels to them.

"There’s no interlocking of board, there’s no interlocking of shareholders, I had nothing to do with the negotiation of the deal.

"And in fact it was negotiated before I went on the board of Navigator.

"But most importantly the company that is our client itself, Sibar, was not then sanctioned, is not now sanctioned, and never was sanctioned in between.

"So there is nothing what so ever improper."

He adds: "I think the important thing was is there was disclosure, there is no impropriety and if people draw a contrary conclusion that’s because the papers have twisted the story and made it into something that it’s not there."

More tweets from Kamal on his interview with the US Commerce Secretary about the Paradise Papers.

Wilbur Ross has just been interviewed by our economics editor Kamal Ahmed, who has tweeted about it. More from that interview to come shortly.

Christian Aid has called on the UK government to do more to curb the kind of tax avoidance highlighted in the Paradise Papers.

The charity's Toby Quantrill told BBC Radio 5 live that the government was "in control of a fairly large chunk of the problem" and should require overseas territories to observe the same transparency as the UK.

He said the impact was felt most in developing countries, where "massive flows of illicit finance" were outstripping the level of aid coming in.

"This is all murky stuff," he said.

Politicians around the world have been reacting to the Paradise Papers leaks - and their views are mixed.

A German government spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said the publication was "welcome", because "it sheds light on the structure, actors and beneficiaries of parallel tax worlds".

However, the Russians have been less favourable.

The head of the foreign affairs committee of the Russian senate, Konstantin Kosachev, maintained that the leaks were "stirring emotions and muddled wording" and accused the media of presenting them as a "fantastic, phantasmagorical text".

BBC royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell says: "The palace has known for some days that this was coming, but they have - so far - failed to utter a single syllable other than to point out what we already knew, that the Queen does of course pay the equivalent of income tax on her private income.

"And it is, I think, stretching it to say the Queen’s officials have been defending the investment practices.

They haven’t, other than the Duchy of Lancaster issuing a statement to Panorama saying that all her investments are legitimate.

"This is on pretty much every front page certainly in this country and I would imagine that it’s having an impact overseas.

"One must imagine that there are meetings taking place and perhaps something will emerge later in the day.

"This cannot be helpful in terms of the overall reputation of somebody who has been so scrupulous, who has been known for so many years for setting an impeccable example in every aspect of her life."

Image source, BBC/PA

The government must stop "dragging its feet" and curb the use of offshore tax havens, opposition politicians say.

Their criticism comes after a leak of financial papers from Bermuda revealing the secret investments of the rich and famous, including the Queen.

Sir Vince Cable said British overseas tax havens were a "bizarre anomaly".

Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell said people "would be outraged" by the scale of tax avoidance.

Read more

Donald Trump's commerce secretary has been accused of misleading senators after leaked documents revealed his business links to Russian figures who are currently under US sanctions.

Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal said Wilbur Ross's failure to disclose this information was "inexcusable", external.

The Paradise Papers show he retained an interest in a company shipping oil and gas for a Russian energy firm, Sibur.

Two of Sibur's owners are subject to some form of US sanctions.

The US commerce department says Mr Ross has not done anything illegal and never met any of the figures under sanctions.

Read more here.

Image source, Getty Images

"The EU has so far failed to respond to the [previously leaked] Panama Papers," says Rachel Owens, head of EU advocacy at international campaigning NGO Global Witness.

"These fresh leaks once again expose a damaging rogue system that enables crime, corruption and wrongdoing, hidden by secretive offshore companies and trusts. The EU must act now.

"Anonymous companies and trusts are getaway cars that enable money laundering, corruption, terrorism, tax evasion and human trafficking – with devastating impact for people across and beyond Europe. The best way to tackle this problem is to shine the light of transparency and reveal those behind these secret structures."

Another union leader has stepped into the fray.

Unison general secretary Dave Prentis says: "By stashing the cash in tax havens, they’ve been depriving the British people of much-needed funding for schools, hospitals and care homes.

"The government must act immediately, and bring forward changes in the Budget to tackle tax avoidance and tax havens.

"Those with the most at their disposal should be making the biggest contribution to our public services – not hiding money abroad, and shirking their obligations."