A judge has given former England rugby union star Lawrence Dallaglio time to clear a tax debt of about £700,000.

Judge Sebastian Prentis considered Dallaglio’s case at an Insolvency and Companies Court hearing in London after HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) officials lodged a bankruptcy petition.

Dallaglio, 50, is trying to raise money by selling a property, an HMRC representative told the judge on Tuesday.

A judge will reconsider the case in about three months, the court was told.

Dallaglio, part of the England side that won the World Cup in 2003, was not at the hearing.

He was listed by his full name – Lawrence Bruno Nero Dallaglio – on court papers and represented by a lawyer.