Toshiba’s chief executive has apologised to the office of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for the accounting scandal that has enveloped the global technology giant.

Reuters reports that Masashi Muromachi met with prime ministerial aids yesterday to talk about the scandal, which began when it was revealed in July that profits at the company had been overstated by $1.2bn (£760m).

Since the revelations the CEO Hisao Tanaka has quit, with chairman Muromachi taking over the role.

Two previous CEOs who had remained at Toshiba in advisory roles have also departed.

The scandal has prompted calls for tougher governance in Japan, which has only just introduced new governance measures alongside a new stewardship code for shareholders.

Part of the new rules require Japanese companies to appoint two independent directors. Reuters reports that Toshiba already had four on a 16-strong board.

Toshiba’s auditor, the Japanese arm of Ernst & Young, has launched an in-house investigation into the audit of Toshiba. Reuters says Ernst&Young ShinNihon LLC has established a team of 20 senior figures to look how it conducted its audit.