Over £150bn has been wiped off the fortunes of the UK’s richest people in the “devastation” of the international economic crisis, it has been revealed.

In just a year the number of billionaires has fallen from 75 to 43, the Sunday Times Rich List 2009 said.

Philip Beresford, who has compiled the list for the last 21 years, said he was surprised at the scale of the losses suffered by many of the super-rich.

He said: “I am beyond being surprised except by the scale of the devastation.

“It is extraordinary how people have seen their fortunes being whittled away.

“It is devastation all round.

“But losing a few zeros off your theoretical fortune is nothing to being turfed out of your home or your job.”

The biggest single loser is London-based steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who has seen his personal fortune drop by almost £17bn to £10.8bn. Despite that, he retains his place as the country’s richest man for the fifth year running.

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich keeps his position at second on the list despite his fortune falling to £7bn from £11.7bn.

The richest British-born billionaire is the Duke of Westminster. His fortune, mainly based on property, has shrunk to £6.5bn from £7bn.

Collectively, the 1,000 multi-millionaires in the list are worth £258bn, down from last year’s record total of £413bn.

There are some bright spots among the gloom however — the former boss of supermarket chain Morrisons Sir Ken Morrison has seen his fortune rise by 11%, making him worth £1.6 billion.

Harrods owner Mohamed al Fayed has added 17% to his fortune which is now worth £650 million.

And Peter and Denise Coates, owners of Stoke-based online sports betting website Bet365, have seen their fortune go up by a third. They are now worth £400 million and rank 128th on the list.

Mr Beresford said the relative success of both Sir Ken and Mr al Fayed showed it was possible for some businesses to prosper even in straitened circumstances.

The list, published in full in The Sunday Times yesterday, revealed the extent of the losses suffered by some of the biggest names in showbusiness with stars including Sir Elton John and Robbie Williams losing around a quarter of their personal wealth over the past year.

RICH LIST’S TOP 10 BILLIONAIRES

1. Lakshmi Mittal and family, steel £10,800m

2. Roman Abramovich, oil and industry £7,000m

3. The Duke of Westminster, property £6,500m

4. Ernesto and Kirsty Bertarelli, pharmaceuticals £5,000m

5. Hans Rausing and family, packaging £4,000m

6. Sir Philip and Lady Green, retailing £3,830m

7. Charlene and Michel de Carvalho, brewing £2,960m

8. Sammy and Eyal Ofer, shipping and property £2,677m

9= John Fredriksen, shipping £2,500m

9= Joe Lewis, foreign exchange and investment £2,500m

9= Kirsten and Jorn Rausing, investment £2,500m

9= David and Simon Reuben, property £2,500m

TOP 10 BIG LOSERS

1 Lakshmi Mittal and family, steel

2. Roman Abramovich, oil and industry

3. Alisher Usmanov, steel and mines

4. Vladimir Kim, mining

5. John Fredriksen, shipping

6. Anil Agarwal, mining

7. David and Simon Reuben, property

8. Sir Richard Branson, transport

9. Sean Quinn and family, property

10. Hans Rausing and family, packaging