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The watchdog banned Belfast-based mortgage adviser Gerard McStravick for being knowingly involved in submitting false mortgage applications to lenders.

The FSA found a number of mortgage applications Mr McStravick submitted contained false information as to applicants' incomes and employment details and were supported by fake documents, including bogus pay slips and P60 forms.

Mr McStravick also provided false and misleading information to FSA investigators to prevent them from establishing the extent of his involvement in mortgage fraud by attributing all fraudulent mortgage applications to a former employee.

But the false applications were submitted before and after the employee worked for him, the regulator found.

Three advisers based in South London were also banned by the FSA for submitting false mortgage applications to lenders backed by faked documents.

The banned advisers were Rafiu Adisa Akanbi, trading as Greenwich-based Rafin Adisa Akanbi; Erinma Didi Jordan of Peckham-based Trekfree Associates Ltd and Byron Brown, principal and director of both Balham-based Millbank Consultancy Limited and Lewisham-based Millbank Mortgages Limited.

The FSA also cancelled the permissions of Gerard McStravick, trading as Fast Track Mortgage and Finance Consultants and of Rafiu Adisa Akanbi, trading as Rafin Adisa Akanbi of Trekfree Associates also of Millbank Consultancy Limited and Millbank Mortgages Limited. 

A final notice was also issued last week for Chepstow-based adviser Andrew Jeffreys, trading as Chepstow Financial Services. Mr Jeffreys was fined £10,500 after he was found to have relied too heavily on customers' declarations that they could afford the mortgage contracts and did not satisfy the regulator he had assessed the affordability of the mortgage contracts he recommended.

Mr Jeffreys was also not able to demonstrate to the FSA's satisfaction how he carried out the training, supervision and monitoring of advisory staff.

In some instances he failed to disclose adequately to clients the additional fees payable as a result of his use of packagers to source products.

Jonathan Phelan, head of retail enforcement at the FSA, said: "In all of the client files we reviewed we found that the customers had made false declarations about their incomes and Mr Jeffreys simply accepted this information at face value. Consequently his business was more at risk of being used to commit mortgage fraud.

"Mr McStravick's business was used to commit mortgage fraud and his actions posed a risk to lenders. Banning him is part of a wider FSA effort to tackle mortgage fraud, which includes us working alongside other authorities such as the police, and acting on information received from lenders and whistleblowers.

"The actions of these brokers posed a risk to lenders, and banning them supports the FSA's remit to tackle financial crime as well as to protect consumers and promote confidence in the financial system."