Social housing firm Connaught plunged deeper into the gloom this week after it emerged that an executive may have breached City regulations by selling shares two days ahead
of a profit warning

Peter Jones, chief executive of the firm鈥檚 partnership division, made 拢264,953 selling shares on 21 May and 23 June. The second sale came just two days before a profit warning that led shares to fall 53% in three days.

A Connaught statement said: 鈥淐onnaught is conducting an internal inquiry into the timing of these transactions and will make a further announcement as appropriate.鈥� Jones remains an employee at Connaught pending the results of the probe.

The profit warning said that the firm would suffer from recent public sector austerity drives, taking 拢13m from this year鈥檚 profit, and 拢16m from next year鈥檚.