Appointment of Paul Fisher to the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England - Treasury Contents


1  Introduction

The appointment and our inquiry

1. On 12 February 2009 the Bank of England announced that Paul Fisher was to be appointed Executive Director, Markets, with effect from 1 March.[1] As such, Paul Fisher became a member of the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC). In accordance with our established practice for those appointed or re-appointed to the MPC, we decided to report on whether Paul Fisher fulfilled our criteria for appointments to the MPC of professional competence and personal independence. We asked Paul Fisher to complete a questionnaire and to provide a curriculum vitae and then we took oral evidence from him on 21 April. That oral evidence and his answers to our questionnaire will be published in Volume II of this Report. We are grateful to Paul Fisher for his evidence.

The appointment process

2. The vacancy filled by Paul Fisher was created by the appointment of Paul Tucker, the bank's previous Executive Director, Markets, as Deputy Governor, Financial Stability. On 19 June 2008, the Chancellor of the Exchequer reported in a letter to the Chairman of this Committee that the Governor had indicated to him that in future the Bank would "advertise externally the two Bank Executive Director posts which carry MPC membership".[2] This change was designed to ensure that all future appointments to the MPC would be the subject of external advertisement, following the Government's decision in 2007 to make external appointments to the MPC subject to such advertisement.[3]

3. Paul Fisher's appointment was the first to be made under the new arrangements. The post was advertised externally and candidates were interviewed by a committee chaired by the Governor. The responsibility for making such executive appointments is a decision for the Governor of the Bank, after consultation with the Chancellor of the Exchequer.[4] In previous Reports we have welcomed the Government's decision to advertise for future vacancies for external members of the MPC.[5]

4. We have previously welcomed the decision of the Governor of the Bank of England to make appointments to the posts of Executive Directors of the Bank which carry membership of the Monetary Policy Committee subject to external advertisement and we are pleased to note that the appointment of the Executive Director, Markets, was subject to this process.


1   "Appointment - Executive Director, Markets", Bank of England News Release , 12 February 2009, www.bankofengland.co.uk Back

2   Letter from the Chancellor of the Exchequer to John McFall MP, available at www.parliament.uk/documents/upload/Chancellor08619F.pdf Back

3   Treasury Committee, Twelfth Report of Session 2006-07, The Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England: ten years on, HC 299-I, para 78 Back

4   Bank of England Act 1998, c 11, section 13 Back

5   HC (2006-07) 299-I, paras 79, 84 Back


 
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Prepared 24 April 2009