Top City Regulator Andrew Bailey Slams Bradford Council over Paul Flowers

A top city regulator has slammed Bradford Council for failing to warn the Bank of England about the behaviour of Rev Paul Flowers during his time as a city councillor.

Andrew Bailey, deputy governor of the BoE and chief executive officer of the Prudential Regulation Authority, told the Sunday Telegraph that the council had a "moral duty" to inform the BoE, which agrees bank board appointments.

Bailey's criticism came after drug allegations were levelled against Flowers, the former chairman of the Co-op Bank.

After his resignation in June following the failure of the Co-op to buy more than 600 Lloyds Bank branches, it was revealed that Flowers had also resigned as a Labour councillor on Bradford Council after pornography was found on a work computer.

But at the time the move was said to be down to work pressures.

"I feel worried there are other organisations out there who knew things about him and didn't say," Bailey said.

"When he stepped down from Bradford Council he told us it was to spend more time with the bank. Of course what he didn't tell us was why he was stepping down because it was never revealed.

"That is something that is of concern to me. This is a personal view but the whole idea that you can do deals with people so they can neatly shuffle off the scene when there is a different story behind [it] is something I think is very difficult.

"I think there is a moral duty. If I was in that situation it would be on my conscience."

Bradford Council had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.