Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, founder and non-executive director of EasyJet, has escalated his row with the rest of the airline’s board by refusing to approve its annual accounts.

The company said Sir Stelios, the largest shareholder with a stake of 26.9 per cent, had abstained from a board vote to approve the 2008 results because of concerns about the balance sheet value of some assets acquired in a takeover early this year of Gatwick-based GB Airways.