In total he faces two charges of assault causing physical injury and one of attempted assault, as well as further charges of harassment and aggravated harassment. He has pleaded not guilty.

In a statement, provided to Open Politics, Mr Collard said he had intervened to protect a female friend who had been experiencing harassment.

“Confronting the individual, an altercation ensued due to his aggressive behaviour. In self-defence, I took appropriate measures,” he said.

Britishvolt

Mr Collard is the founder of Scale Facilitation, an investment firm based in his native Australia. Its subsidiary Recharge Industries agreed to take control of Britishvolt after it went into administration in January.

The ambitious British start-up had planned to build a £4bn “gigafactory” to manufacture battery packs for a new generation of electric cars. It was once hailed by the former Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, as a part of his “green industrial revolution”.

It would have been built on the site of an old power station at Cambois, near Blyth in Northumberland. But the venture ran out of money and collapsed into administration in early 2023.

Mr Collard agreed to buy the company for £8.57m, saying he would use the site to build batteries for the Australian military.

Just over £6m was paid immediately, followed later by a further £300,000. But £2.2m remains outstanding, despite having become due last April. Earlier this month, the administrator EY extended the administration period until January 2025.

In order to secure the Cambois site, Recharge Industries would also need to raise another £11m to pay property investor Katch, which has a financial claim on it.