Economy

Bank of England governor appointment to be delayed

Mark Carney could be asked to extend term if Brexit delayed, report says

Mark Carney, governor of the Bank of England. Photograph: Reuters

Wed Sep 18 2019 - 06:47

The appointment of the next governor of the Bank of England will be pushed back until after the forthcoming election, the Financial Times reported, citing people briefed on the matter.

Bank of England governor Mark Carney could be asked to extend his term if Brexit is delayed again, according to the report.

The Treasury, in response to the FT report, said that the process of appointing the next BoE chief is on track.

“The process is on track and we will make an appointment in due course”, a Treasury spokesman said in an emailed statement.

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BoE said it had no comment on the FT article.

A short list of candidates to succeed Carney has been sent to the Treasury by a panel of senior civil servants and an independent member, the FT reported.

The list is said to include Financial Conduct Authority chief executive Andrew Bailey, Santander UK chairwoman Shriti Vadera, London School of Economics head Minouche Shafik and BoE deputy governors Ben Broadbent and Jon Cunliffe.

Ministers are not likely to meet the British government’s deadline of announcing Mr Carney’s successor this autumn, the report added.

New government

The process of choosing the next governor is going “very slowly” and an expected election in November or December makes it likely that the appointment will not be made until a new government was in place, according to the report.

British prime minister Boris Johnson said last month that the next Bank of England chief must be independent without commenting on whether the successful candidate had to be a Brexit supporter.

Mr Carney is due to stand down at the end of January 2020. His successor will be formally chosen by the finance minister, Sajid Javid. – Reuters

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