Inside the Bank of England : memoirs of Christopher Dow, chief economist, 1973-84 / edited with an introduction by Graham Hacche and Christopher Taylor ; with a foreword by Sir Kit McMahon.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Taylor, C. T. (Christopher Thomas), 1938-

Hacche, Graham.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Dow, J. C. R. (J. Christopher R.).

Dow, J. C. R.

Bank of England--History--20th century.

Bank of England.

Economists--Great Britain--Biography.

Economists.

Economic policy.

History.

Great Britain.

Great Britain--Economic policy--History--20th century.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

xi, 302 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Basingstoke : Palgrave Macmillan, 2013.

Summary:

Palgrave Studies in Economic History Series is designed to illuminate and enrich our understanding of economies and economic phenomena of the past. The series covers a vast range of topics including financial history, labour history, development economics, the industrial revolution and world economic history.

Christopher Dow (1916-98) was one of the most accomplished British economists of the post-war generation. His influence-and relative anonymity - came from devoting his exceptional abilities to public service for most of his career, notably at the Bank of England.

The memoirs that he wrote during his time at the Bank shed an extraordinarily revealing light on what is widely recognised to have been one of the most difficult times for the UK economy since the 1930s, and many of these policy debates have re-emerged in the wake of the financial crisis of 2007-08 and subsequent recession. These memoirs are not only informative and topical for current economic policy, but also explore the nature of life at the top of the Bank during those troubled times, painting detailed portraits of the key protagonists in the management of the economy. Book jacket.

Contents:

1 The Crisis Year 1976: Events to the Autumn, with a Brief Retrospect Back to 1973 34

My first three years at the Bank 34

Exchange rate policy 44

Events of March to early September 1976 47

Supporting the pound 54

Bank-Treasury relations 56

The sterling crisis deepens 59

2 Autumn 1976 to Summer 1977 65

September to December 1976 65

Negotiations leading to the IMF agreement 65

The three months to Easter 1977 73

A stronger pound 73

Relations with the Bank's department heads and the Governor 78

Easter to August 1977 79

A new phase of incomes policy 80

Changes at the Treasury 82

A visit to the United States 83

Old and new policy dilemmas 85

A more powerful Bank? 88

3 Autumn 1977 to Summer 1978 90

Uncapping the exchange rate 92

'Practical monetarism' in the Bank 96

From an expansionary Budget to contractionary measures 98

A call to reconsider methods of monetary control 100

Thoughts on independence, and personalities and aspirations at the top of the Bank 102

Bank-Treasury relations and the seignorage issue 105

Beginnings of change at the Bank, and auguries for the future 107

Social life, and some observations on the Governor 108

The Iron Lady 110

4 Autumn 1978 to Summer 1979 114

Formation of the European Monetary System 115

The 'winter of discontent' 118

Attitudes and conflicts at the top of the Bank, and preparations for reorganization 122

Adjusting to the change of government 128

Impending recession, and policy dilemmas 134

5 Autumn 1979 to Summer 1980 138

Growing worries about the economy 138

Reorganization of the Bank 145

As recession hits, a different style of government 153

Violent incidents reflect rising social tensions 163

6 Autumn 1980 to Summer 1981 165

Recession deepens, though monetary growth exceeds targets 166

Mrs Thatcher attacks the Bank 167

Other participants in the policy debate 173

Further tightening in the 1981 Budget 176

The battle over monetary base control 178

Bank-Treasury relations 182

Policy drifts and lacks substance 184

7 Autumn 1981 to Summer 1982 188

The economy in 1981-82: bumping along the bottom 188

The Prime Minister dictates policy 193

The Falklands war 197

The overfunding debate 198

Changes in the Bank's senior staff 200

Looking to the future of the Bank, and of policy 202

8 Autumn 1982 to Summer 1983 208

A year of marking time, in the economy and personally 208

The Latin American debt crisis 211

Mrs Thatcher's ambivalence on monetary policy 215

Announcement of the new Governor, and other changes 221

Governor Richardson retires 230

Thinking about my retirement 234

Appendix: Main Problems Ahead for Economic Policy 235

9 Conclusion: Summer 1984 246.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781137032300

1137032308

OCLC:

822525632