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David Blanchflowe, Stirling, 25/2/09
David Blanchflower when he was an MPC member in 2009. He now accuses Sir Mervyn King of 'preventing dissent'. Photograph: David Moir/Reuters
David Blanchflower when he was an MPC member in 2009. He now accuses Sir Mervyn King of 'preventing dissent'. Photograph: David Moir/Reuters

Bank of England silences monetary policy committee members

This article is more than 11 years old
Mervyn King accused of blocking transparency after MPC members prevented from airing personal opinions on economy

The Bank of England will prevent members of its interest rate-setting committee from publishing individual opinions on the economy despite a review of its procedures calling for greater transparency.

The Bank said a "collective forecast" will remain the centrepiece of the monetary policy committee's monthly reports, effectively barring members from explaining their own views on the likely path of economic growth, inflation and unemployment.

Critics of the Bank's response to the Stockton report said the Bank's governor, Sir Mervyn King, had rejected proposals for the public to see a wider range of views because he wanted to maintain a stranglehold on the direction of policy.

David Blanchflower, a former MPC member and a critic of King's 10-year reign, said: "This is about King defending his turf, preventing dissent and blocking transparency."

Blanchflower, who now teaches economics at the Dartmouth College, an Ivy League research university in New Hampshire, said the governor, who will be replaced by Canadian Mark Carney when he retires in the summer, wanted to maintain control of the quarterly inflation report that guides the MPC's policies.

The Stockton review of MPC forecasting warned that it had deteriorated since the financial crash and was worse than many independent forecasters.

The bank was also accused of indulging in groupthink, which prevented debate and quashed ideas from lower-ranking staff.

In response, Threadneedle Street said it agreed some procedures were opaque and there was a need for clear lines of responsibility, but said that criticisms of the MPC, which King chairs, were largely unfounded.

More on this story

More on this story

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