O'Rourke drops down Rich List after losing £200m in a year

Laing O'Rourke chairman Ray O'Rourke was one of the big fallers in this year's Sunday Times Rich List, published yesterday.

Some £200m was wiped off the Irishman's fortune over the past 12 months, as he dropped from 199th place to 243rd. O'Rourke was worth £430m in the 2008 list.

Another to suffer was Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, who had £16.9bn wiped off his fortune, yet he remains top of the list. His fortune has fallen from £33bn in June 2008 to just £10.8bn this year.

JCB owner Sir Anthony Bamford saw his wealth slashed by over £1bn, as he fell from 34th to 44th. He is now worth £950m, down 51% from the £1.95bn he was worth in 2008.

Developers fared better among construction magnates. Luxury property developers the Candy Brothers jumped nearly 500 places to 156th, with an estimated fortune of £330m. Last year they were worth £210m.

One of the Candys biggest projects is the £741m One Hyde Park development, where Laing O'Rourke is main contractor.

The Duke of Westminster stays at number three on the list, though £500m has been wiped of his wealth, including £190m of provisions and writedowns on his Grosvenor Group's Liverpool One shopping development.

The Reuben Brothers moved up a place from number 10 to number nine on the list, although their fortune also fell, by £1.8bn. Their main property firm, Aldersgate Investments, has written off £530m in the past year.