Former Methodist minister Paul Flowers banned after sex and drug emails

Getty Images | Paul Thomas

Paul Flowers, former chairman of Co-Operative Bank Plc, right, is surrounded by media as he leaves Leeds Magistrates Court in Leeds, U.K., on Wednesday, May 7, 2014.

A former chairman of the Co-operative Bank has been banned from the financial services industry in the United Kingdom.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ruled that Paul Flowers, who was also a Methodist minister, had used his work cell-phone to call a premium rate chat line offering sexual content.

It also noted that he had used his work email account to send and receive sexually explicit messages and to discuss illegal drugs.

Flowers was forced to step down from the Co-operative Bank following allegations he bought and used illegal drugs and claimed inappropriate expenses.

After Flowers had left the bank he was convicted for possession of cocaine, ketamine and crystal methamphetamine. This earned him the title of “the Crystal Methodist” in the British press.

The FCA said Flowers cannot operate in the financial industry “on the grounds that he is not a fit and proper person.”

In 2013, while Flowers was chairman, the Co-operative Bank was found to have a £1.5 billion hole in its finances.