A former Tesco executive accused of misleading the market over the supermarket's profits has opted not to give evidence at his trial.

Chris Bush, 51, an ex-managing director at Tesco from High Wycombe, is alleged to have failed to correct inaccurately-recorded income figures which were published to auditors, other employees and the wider market.

He is on trial at Southwark Crown Court alongside Carl Rogberg, 50, and John Scouler, 49, the supermarket's former finance chief, and food commercial head.

They deny one count each of fraud by abuse of position and false accounting between February and September 2014, and were investigated after Tesco was found to have inflated its profits.

At the start of Bush's defence case, his barrister Adrian Darbishire QC, informed the court his client would not be giving evidence.

Judge Deborah Taylor asked Mr Darbishire if Bush was aware the jury may draw inferences from his decision.

Saying that he was, Mr Darbishire added: "I will not be calling Mr Bush."

Instead the court was read a series of character witness statements.

One came from Bush's daughter Emily Bush, who sat in the public gallery crying, as jurors heard her father had "literally dedicated his life to Tesco" and described him as having made many sacrifices for his work.

Bush sat weeping in the dock as jurors heard he was loved "to bits" by his daughter.

Her statement continued: "It is really important to dad to do the right thing. He has always said to me 'if you are going to do something, do it the best you can and do it properly'."

Jurors heard that in Miss Bush's experience her father had always been "honest and straightforward".

The court has heard that a shock announcement published in September 2014 disclosed Tesco had overestimated its profits by about £250 million.

The scandal is said to have wiped £2 billion off the supermarket's total share value.

Rogberg, of Chiselhampton, Oxfordshire, Bush, of High Wycombe, and Scouler, of St Albans, Hertfordshire, all deny the charges.

The trial continues at 10am on Thursday.