Economy
Lord Myners to lead Co-operative Bank governance review
The former Labour City minister Lord Myners is to conduct a review to examine the governance within the Co-operative Bank, which was brought into question last month amid a drugs scandal.
The Co-operative Group announced that Myners, who served as financial services secretary from 2008 until 2010, would be joining the board as a non-executive director with immediate effect.
The group also said that Myners was being appointed to chair the board’s current governance review, which is looking into the group’s democracy and constitution.
The review was announced after pressure from some MPs, including the prime minister, who said that it was needed after the former chair of the banking arm, Paul Flowers, was filmed buying drugs.
Myners said the group was at a “crucial point in its development”.
“Right now it faces serious challenges in terms of business performance and ensuring that the right governance is in place to deliver in the interests of all its members and customers”, he said.
He added that he was looking forward to working with the rest of the management team to realise the group’s potential.
Commenting on the appointment, Euan Sutherland, chief executive of the Co-operative Group, said, “I am delighted that Paul [Myners] has agreed to join the board and I look forward to working closely with him. He brings significant and valuable experience across a number of fields and will be a great asset as we work through the final stages of the recapitalisation of the bank and move to take the wider group to the next phase of its development.”
Myners will earn £1 a year in his new role. “I’m doing it because the Co-op matters – it matters to me and it matters to its 9 million members”, he told the BBC.
Further reading:
George Osborne orders inquiry into Co-op’s appointment of Flowers
Banking reform to be debated in House of Lords
The Co-op Bank has been spiky, fearless and political; it’s imperative it remains ethical