Former Co-operative Bank chairman, Paul Flowers, 73, has been charged with fraud. He held the bank’s non-executive chairman role from 2009 to 2013. He is set to appear in court on Wednesday for one count of fraud by abuse of position, allegedly occurring between June 2016 and October 2017. Flowers, a former Methodist minister and Labour councillor, denied the charge, stating he hadn’t faced any legal actions since being questioned by the police over four years ago. The Co-operative Bank, known for its ethical stance, declined to comment. Flowers, who also served as a Labour Party councillor, was part of the bank during its 2009 merger with Britannia Building Society, which later revealed a £1.5 billion capital shortfall leading to a rescue in 2013. The bank’s ownership was subsequently taken over by private equity groups due to corporate governance failures. This puts Flowers in a category with a few senior bankers facing criminal charges, including former Barclays boss John Varley, who was acquitted of alleged fraud tied to the 2008 financial crisis.
By FCCT Editorial Team
, an independent military force, and allied militias in Sudan raped several dozen women and girls in West Darfur’s capital, El Geneina, and those fleeing to Chad between late April and late June 2023, Human Rights Watch said today. The assailants appear to have targeted people because of their Massalit ethnicity and, in some cases, because they were known activists.){kind=link}