Robinson 00 Prelims 9 11/5/04 10:57:31 Am X Successes and Failures in Regulating and Deregulating Utilities

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Robinson 00 Prelims 9 11/5/04 10:57:31 Am X Successes and Failures in Regulating and Deregulating Utilities The authors Doug Andrew has economics and public policy degrees from Princeton and Auckland Universities. He is a consultant and was Group Director of Economic Regulation at the Civil Aviation Authority in London from 1997 to 2003 and Commissioner for Eurocontrolʼs Performance Review Commission. Previously, he was Branch Manager and Deputy Secretary in the New Zealand Treasury specializing in microeconomic and regulatory reform and corporatization in sectors such as energy, telecommunications and transport. Frits Bolkestein who is Dutch, is the European Union Internal Market Commissioner. He was educated at Barlaeus Gymnasium in Amsterdam, Oregon State College, USA, where he studied mathematics and the Gemeentelijke Universiteit Amsterdam, where he studied mathematics and physics, philosophy and Greek. He also studied economics at the University of London and completed a Master at Law at the University of Leiden. Bolkestein worked for the Shell Group from 1960 to1976, with posts in East Africa, Honduras, El Salvador, London, Indonesia and Paris, and from 1973 to 1976 he was Director of Shell Chimie in Paris. Between 1978 and 1999 Bolkestein was a Member of Parliament for the V.V.D. (Liberals) and from 1982 to 1986 he was Minister for Foreign Trade. He was Chairman for the Atlantic Commission (in the Netherlands) from 1986 to 1988 and from 1988 to 1989, he was Minister of Defence. He was Chairman of the V.V.D. Parliamentary Group between 1990 and 1998 and since 1996 he has been President of Liberal Internationale. Bolkestein is also Chairman of the Amsterdam Bach Soloists, member of the Royal Institute of International Affairs (London) and the author of books and articles on a wide range of topics. Martin Cave is Professor and Director of the Centre for Management under Regulation at the Warwick Business School. Until 2001, he was Professor of Economics at Brunel University. He specializes in regulatory economics, especially of the communications sector. As well as his academic work, Cave advises OFTEL, OFCOM and other regulators in the UK and was a member of the UK Competition Commission from 1996 to 2002. He has also undertaken studies for the European Commission.Colin Robinson He is the - 9781845420789 author of the Independent Review of SpectrumDownloaded Management from Elgar Online(2002) at for09/23/2021 the UK 09:30:02PM Government, co-author via free access ix Robinson 00 prelims 9 11/5/04 10:57:31 am x Successes and failures in regulating and deregulating utilities of Understanding Regulation (1999) and co-editor of the Handbook of Telecommunications Economics (2002). Graham Corbett was appointed Chairman of the Postal Services Commission in March 2000. He was previously a Deputy Chairman of the Competition Commission. He is also Chairman of Ricability, a charity concerned with research and information for consumers with disabilities. Corbett was born in 1934. He qualified as a chartered accountant and was for 12 years the Senior Partner of Peat Marwickʼs Continental European firm based in Paris. He then moved to the commercial world to become the chief financial officer and a main board director of Eurotunnel. He was awarded a CBE in 1994 for services to transport. David Edmonds has been Director General of Telecommunications at Oftel, the UK telecommunications regulatory agency, since 1998. In September 2002 he was appointed as a Board member of Ofcom, the new regulator for the communications sector. He will continue to hold his current responsibilities as Director General of Telecommunications until Oftel is merged with the other communications regulators to form Ofcom in December 2003. Between 1991 and 1997 he was Managing Director of Group Central Services at NatWest, responsible for the development, operation and management of the Groupʼs £2.8 billion property portfolio, and the Groupʼs support services. From 1984 to 1991 David Edmonds was Chief Executive of the Housing Corporation, the major instrument for delivery of the Governmentʼs social housing programme. Edmondsʼ career in the Civil Service includes two years as Head of the Division in the Department of Environment, dealing with housebuilding and mortgage finance, four years as Principal Private Secretary to the Secretary of State for the Environment, and one year as Under Secretary of the Inner Cities Directorate, responsible for policy and management of Governmentʼs Inner Cities Programme. David Edmonds spent six years as a Council Member and Treasurer of Keele University, five years as a Board Member of English Partnerships, and Chairman of its Property, Planning and Projects Committee, and has been a Member of the Board of Hammerson Plc since 2003. He was a Chair of CRISIS, the charity for the single homeless for six years, and he is currently a Member of the Board of the Social Market Foundation. Philip Fletcher was appointed for a renewable five-year term as Director General of Water Services on 1 August 2000. His previous career was basedColin mainly Robinson in central - 9781845420789 government public service, with an emphasisDownloaded on financialfrom Elgar issues. Online at 09/23/2021 09:30:02PM via free access Robinson 00 prelims 10 11/5/04 10:57:31 am The authors xi Born in 1946, Philipʼs immediate previous post was as Receiver for the Metropolitan Police District from 1996. The Receiver had statutory responsibility for the administration of the Metropolitan Police Fund. He was a full member of the Commissionerʼs management team but was separately accountable to the Home Secretary. He was in charge of finance, procurement, internal audit and property services, and the legal owner of all Metropolitan Police property. In that role, he managed projects to improve financial management and review and outsource support services. Earlier, he was a founder member of the Department of the Environment from 1970. His work there covered such issues as planning and land use, urban regeneration, rural issues, local government, finance and private housing. As Director of Central Finance there, he took part in the issues leading up to the privatization of the water industry in England and Wales in 1989. Fletcher was appointed Chief Executive of PSA Services (the former Property Services Agency) in 1993. When he had completed its privatization, he transferred to head the Cities and Countryside Group in DoE in 1994. Educated at Marlborough College and Oxford University, Philip Fletcher is married with one daughter. He is a lay reader in the Church of England and his hobbies include walking and bird-watching. Callum McCarthy joined the FSA in September 2003 from the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets where he was Chairman and Chief Executive. He had previously held senior positions in Barclays Bank, BZW and Kleinwort Benson, as well as in the Department for Trade and Industry. He is an economist and graduate of the School of Business at Stanford University, where he was a Sloan Fellow. McCarthyʼs early career was in the chemical industry, and in the DTI where he held several posts including Principal Private Secretary to Roy Hattersley when he was Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection and to Norman Tebbit when he was Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. In 1985 he left the DTI and joined Kleinwort Benson as Director of Corporate Finance. In 1989 he joined Barclaysʼ investment banking arm, BZW, as Managing Director and Deputy Head of Corporate Finance, later becoming Chief Executive Officer of Barclays Bank group operations in Japan before moving to head the Bankʼs businesses in North America. McCarthy left Barclays to become Director General of the gas regulator Ofgas in 1998. When the new energy super-regulator Ofgem was set up the following year, he became Chief Executive before becoming executive Chairman in 2000. At Ofgem he oversaw the introduction of greater competition into the gas and electricity markets. Callum McCarthy is married withColin two Robinson sons and - 9781845420789 one daughter. He was born on 29 FebruaryDownloaded 1944. from Elgar Online at 09/23/2021 09:30:02PM via free access Robinson 00 prelims 11 11/5/04 10:57:31 am xii Successes and failures in regulating and deregulating utilities Sir Derek Morris is Chairman of the Competition Commission (formerly the Monopolies and Mergers Commission). He first joined the MMC in 1991 as a member, becoming a deputy chairman in 1995 and chairman in 1998. Having studied Politics, Philosophy and Economics at Oxford from 1964 to 1967, and then for a D.Phil in economics at Nuffield College, he took up a Research Fellowship at the Centre for Business and Industrial Studies at Warwick University. Then, from 1970 until 1998, he was fellow and tutor in economics at Oriel College, Oxford. During this time he wrote numerous book and articles, primarily in the field of Industrial economics. Books included The Economic System in the UK (third edition, Oxford University Press, 1985); Unquoted Companies (Macmillan, 1984); Industrial Economics and Organisation (Oxford University Press, 1979, second edition, 1991); and Chinese State Owned Enterprises and Economic Reform (the last three written by D. Hay). Other academic activities included chairmanship of the economics sub-faculty and then Social Studies faculty at Oxford and editorial board responsibilities for the Journal of Industrial Economics, the Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford Economic Papers, among others. Other activities have included three years on secondment as economic Director of the National Economic Development Council, and Chairman of Oxford Economic and Social Research. He has also been involved for over 20 years in various types of advisory and consultancy work, initially in the field of competition policy but more recently for the Asian Development Bank, in helping to design and implement economic reform measures in China and Central Asia. Derek Morris was knighted in the 2002 New Year Honours List. Chris Nash has a BA in Economics with First Class Honours from Reading University and a PhD in Transport Economics from Leeds.
Recommended publications
  • Dr. Andrew Sentance
    DR. ANDREW SENTANCE Senior Economic Adviser at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP Author of Rediscovering Growth: After the Crisis Former external member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of England Former Chief Economist and Head of Environmental Affairs at British Airways Head of Economic Policy and Director of Economic Affairs at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) Dr Andrew Sentance is Senior Economic Adviser at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and the author of Rediscovering Growth: After the Crisis, published in November 2013. From October 2006 until May 2011, he served as an external member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of England. He is the third longest serving external member of the MPC, and his period of office spanned the financial crisis, the ensuing recession and the beginnings of economic recovery. While on the Committee, Andrew was not afraid to challenge the consensus view of his MPC colleagues. He argued for interest rate rises during his last year on the Committee, earning himself the reputation as an monetary policy “hawk”. Topics Before joining the Bank of England, Andrew had a very successful career as a business economist. He was Chief Economist and Head of Environmental Affairs at Economics British Airways and was one of the five senior managers appointed in 2001 by Finance Chief Executive Rod Eddington to prepare the company’s “Future Size and Shape” Global Economy turnaround plan. Globalisation Government He joined British Airways in 1998 from London Business School, where he was Director of the Centre for Economic Forecasting. Previous positions held include Head of Economic Policy and Director of Economic Affairs at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI).
    [Show full text]
  • The Run on the Rock
    House of Commons Treasury Committee The run on the Rock Fifth Report of Session 2007–08 Volume II Oral and written evidence Ordered by The House of Commons to be printed 24 January 2008 HC 56–II [Incorporating HC 999 i–iv, Session 2006-07] Published on 1 February 2008 by authority of the House of Commons London: The Stationery Office Limited £25.50 The Treasury Committee The Treasury Committee is appointed by the House of Commons to examine the expenditure, administration, and policy of HM Treasury, HM Revenue & Customs and associated public bodies. Current membership Rt Hon John McFall MP (Labour, West Dunbartonshire) (Chairman) Nick Ainger MP (Labour, Carmarthen West & South Pembrokeshire) Mr Graham Brady MP (Conservative, Altrincham and Sale West) Mr Colin Breed MP (Liberal Democrat, South East Cornwall) Jim Cousins MP (Labour, Newcastle upon Tyne Central) Mr Philip Dunne MP (Conservative, Ludlow) Mr Michael Fallon MP (Conservative, Sevenoaks) (Chairman, Sub-Committee) Ms Sally Keeble MP (Labour, Northampton North) Mr Andrew Love MP (Labour, Edmonton) Mr George Mudie MP (Labour, Leeds East) Mr Siôn Simon MP, (Labour, Birmingham, Erdington) John Thurso MP (Liberal Democrat, Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) Mr Mark Todd MP (Labour, South Derbyshire) Peter Viggers MP (Conservative, Gosport). Powers The Committee is one of the departmental select committees, the powers of which are set out in House of Commons Standing Orders, principally in SO No. 152. These are available on the Internet via www.parliament.uk. Publications The Reports and evidence of the Committee are published by The Stationery Office by Order of the House.
    [Show full text]
  • The Tempered Ordered Probit (TOP) Model with an Application to Monetary Policy William H.Greene Max Gillman Mark N.Harris Christopher Spencer WP 2013 – 10
    ISSN 1750-4171 ECONOMICS DISCUSSION PAPER SERIES The Tempered Ordered Probit (TOP) Model With An Application To Monetary Policy William H.Greene Max Gillman Mark N.Harris Christopher Spencer WP 2013 – 10 School of Business and Economics Loughborough University Loughborough LE11 3TU United Kingdom Tel: + 44 (0) 1509 222701 Fax: + 44 (0) 1509 223910 http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/sbe/economics/ The Tempered Ordered Probit (TOP) model with an application to monetary policy William H. Greeney Max Gillmanz Mark N. Harrisx Christopher Spencer{ September 2013 Abstract We propose a Tempered Ordered Probit (TOP) model. Our contribution lies not only in explicitly accounting for an excessive number of observations in a given choice category - as is the case in the standard literature on in‡ated models; rather, we introduce a new econometric model which nests the recently developed Middle In‡ated Ordered Probit (MIOP) models of Bagozzi and Mukherjee (2012) and Brooks, Harris, and Spencer (2012) as a special case, and further, can be used as a speci…cation test of the MIOP, where the implicit test is described as being one of symmetry versus asymmetry. In our application, which exploits a panel data-set containing the votes of Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) members, we show that the TOP model a¤ords the econometrician considerable ‡exibility with respect to modelling the impact of di¤erent forms of uncertainty on interest rate decisions. Our …ndings, we argue, reveal MPC members’ asymmetric attitudes towards uncertainty and the changeability of interest rates. Keywords: Monetary policy committee, voting, discrete data, uncertainty, tempered equations.
    [Show full text]
  • Minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee Meeting Held on 4 and 5 May 2011
    Publication date: 18 May 2011 MINUTES OF THE MONETARY POLICY COMMITTEE MEETING 4 AND 5 MAY 2011 These are the minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee meeting held on 4 and 5 May 2011. They are also available on the Internet http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/minutes/mpc/pdf/2011/mpc1105.pdf The Bank of England Act 1998 gives the Bank of England operational responsibility for setting interest rates to meet the Government’s inflation target. Operational decisions are taken by the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee. The Committee meets on a regular monthly basis and minutes of its meetings are released on the Wednesday of the second week after the meeting takes place. Accordingly, the minutes of the Committee meeting to be held on 8 and 9 June will be published on 22 June 2011. MINUTES OF THE MONETARY POLICY COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 4 AND 5 MAY 2011 1 Before turning to its immediate policy decision, and against the background of its latest projections for output and inflation, the Committee discussed financial market developments; the international economy; money, credit, demand and output; and supply, costs and prices. Financial markets 2 Markets had generally been stable on the month, against a backdrop of relatively thin trading conditions during the holiday periods. 3 Implied market expectations of the point at which Bank Rate would begin to rise had been pushed back, partly in response to data releases, notably the March CPI outturn. Information derived from overnight index swaps indicated that the market yield curve had fully priced in a 25 basis point increase in Bank Rate by early 2012.
    [Show full text]
  • Chairmans Report.Pdf
    Dean House Vernham Dean Andover, Hants SP11 0JZ Tel: +44 (0)1264737552 Fax: +44 (0)20 7900 2585 Email: [email protected] www.spe.org.uk ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CHAIRMAN 2017‐18 2017‐18 has been a transformative year for the Society. In January, at the start of the Society’s 65th year, we changed our name from Society of Business Economists (SBE) to Society of Professional Economists (SPE). There were two primary reasons why we made this change: 1. To broaden our appeal to a wider and more diverse range of economists. I am pleased to report that the Society’s membership has risen by more than 10% in the 10 months since we made the change and that it continues to grow rapidly. 2. To mark the Society’s expansion into the area of professional development. At the start of this year we launched a new professional development programme for economists, which is being run by the Society’s Head of Professional Development, Andy Ross. Through the hard work of Andy and his team, the popularity of these courses has grown steadily through the year. Meanwhile, the programme of events that the Society is holding has never been stronger. Since the start of the 2017‐2018 financial year, the Society has hosted three central bank governors, three deputy governors, the Chairman of the Office for Budget Responsibility, the Chief Economic Advisor to HM Treasury and a host of economics professors and other experts. We have heard speakers discussing topics ranging from Brexit to Intergenerational Fairness and from the UK’s long‐run economic performance to the outlook for the housing market.
    [Show full text]
  • Brexit and the City
    Brexit and the City Saying No to the Princes of Europe: The City of London as a World Financial Centre following Brexit Or Passport to Pimlico: The City of London’s post-Brexit future depending on whether it is located inside or outside Pimlico or even possibly Latvia Professor David Blake* Cass Business School City University of London [email protected] March 2017 [v10] * I am most grateful to Kevin Dowd, Tim Congdon, Daniel Corrigan, Martin Howe QC, Laurence Jones, Edgar Miller and Patrick Minford for invaluable discussions and support during the preparation of this paper. Highlights On 23 June 2016, the British people voted to leave the EU. The prime minister’s Lancaster House speech on 17 January 2017 made it very clear that this meant also leaving the single market, the customs union and the European Economic Area, membership of which means accepting freedom of movement. This has powerful implications for the City: • It is unlikely that business with the EU27 will be conducted via passports in future. • Instead, and depending on the degree of co-operation from the EU27, the City should plan its future operations using either: o a dual regulatory regime, based on a third-party expanded equivalence model with guarantees about how equivalence will be granted and removed, or o the World Financial Centre model where the City ‘goes it alone’. • Transitional arrangements will also depend on the degree of co-operation from the EU27. It is in everybody’s interests that any transitional arrangements are kept as short term as possible, no longer than is needed to bridge the gap between the UK’s exit from the EU and the conclusion of any formal long-term trading agreement with the EU.
    [Show full text]
  • Bank of England Quarterly Bulletin 2011 Q2
    164 Quarterly Bulletin 2011 Q2 Bank of England speeches A short summary of speeches made by Bank personnel since time to allow the economy to recover before the eventual publication of the previous Bulletin are listed below. policy normalisation begins. The challenges of the ‘New global economy’ Building resilient financial systems: macroprudential regimes Andrew Sentance, Monetary Policy Committee member, and securities market regulation May 2011. Paul Tucker, Deputy Governor, May 2011. www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/speeches/2011/ www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/speeches/2011/ speech500.pdf speech498.pdf In a speech to the Jersey Chamber of Commerce, In a speech at the International Council of Securities Dr Andrew Sentance described the way in which the global Associations Annual General Meeting, Paul Tucker discussed economy has become more integrated and the challenges that how the regulation of securities markets fits into the poses. Four main forces have come together — new development of macroprudential regimes. He explained how technologies, trade liberalisation, political change and market banking and securities markets have become less distinct over deregulation. This has presented three challenges for recent decades, with implications for both in banking policymakers: first, an ongoing process of structural change supervision and securities regulation. He discussed whether, created by the shift in global economic gravity towards Asia; from a financial stability perspective, a distinction between second, a prolonged period of upward pressure on energy and ‘intra-financial firm markets’ and ‘end-user markets’ might be commodity prices; and third, increased potential for global more useful than the more familiar distinction made by economic volatility.
    [Show full text]
  • Inflation, Expectations and Monetary Policy 229
    Speeches Inflation, expectations and monetary policy 229 Inflation, expectations and monetary policy In this speech,(1) Professor David Blanchflower,(2) member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), talks about the importance of inflation expectations for monetary policy making. He discusses what has happened to inflation and inflation expectations in recent months, and what actions should be taken in this area in the context of the current conjuncture. He then identifies four distinct phases of the downturn in the United States, and notes a number of similarities with the United Kingdom, suggesting that in the United Kingdom we may see a substantial decline in growth, a pickup in unemployment, and declining consumption growth driven by significant declines in house prices. He emphasises the importance of getting ahead of the curve in order to head off these downside risks. Introduction Inflation in the United Kingdom and the monetary policy framework It is a great pleasure to be addressing you here this evening at the David Hume Institute. I am a strong believer in Hume’s The Bank’s monetary policy objective is to deliver price own view that we should not seek to solely explain events and stability — low inflation — and, subject to that, to support the behaviour with theoretical models, rather, as Hume wrote in Government’s economic objectives including those for growth his A Treatise of Human Nature, we should use ‘experience and and employment. The inflation target is symmetric, and if the observation’ ie the empirical method. As Arnold Harberger target is missed by more than 1 percentage point on either side (1993) famously said ‘economics is fundamentally an — ie if the annual rate of CPI inflation is more than 3% or less observational discipline’.
    [Show full text]
  • The Management of the Crown Estate
    House of Commons Treasury Committee The management of the Crown Estate Eighth Report of Session 2009–10 Volume I HC 325–I House of Commons Treasury Committee The management of the Crown Estate Eighth Report of Session 2009–10 Volume I Report, together with formal minutes Ordered by the House of Commons to be published 22 March 2010 HC 325–I Published on 30 March 2010 by authority of the House of Commons London: The Stationery Office Limited £0.00 The Treasury Committee The Treasury Committee is appointed by the House of Commons to examine the expenditure, administration, and policy of HM Treasury, HM Revenue & Customs and associated public bodies. Current membership Rt Hon John McFall MP (Labour, West Dunbartonshire) (Chair) Nick Ainger MP (Labour, Carmarthen West & South Pembrokeshire) Mr Graham Brady MP (Conservative, Altrincham and Sale West) Mr Colin Breed MP (Liberal Democrat, South East Cornwall) Jim Cousins MP (Labour, Newcastle upon Tyne Central) Mr Michael Fallon MP (Conservative, Sevenoaks) (Chair, Sub-Committee) Ms Sally Keeble MP (Labour, Northampton North) Mr Andrew Love MP (Labour, Edmonton) John Mann MP (Labour, Bassetlaw) Mr James Plaskitt MP (Labour, Warwick and Leamington) John Thurso MP (Liberal Democrat, Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) Mr Mark Todd MP (Labour, South Derbyshire) Mr Andrew Tyrie MP (Conservative, Chichester) Sir Peter Viggers MP (Conservative, Gosport) Powers The Committee is one of the departmental select committees, the powers of which are set out in House of Commons Standing Orders, principally in SO No. 152. These are available on the Internet via www.parliament.uk. Publications The Reports and evidence of the Committee are published by The Stationery Office by Order of the House.
    [Show full text]
  • Investment, Growth and Capital Markets Union
    INVESTMENT, GROWTH AND CAPITAL MARKETS UNION INDEPENDENT ECONOMISTS GROUP JUNE 2015 TheCityUK represents the UK-based financial and related professional services industry. We lobby on its behalf, producing evidence of its importance to the wider national economy. At home in the UK, in the EU and internationally, we seek to influence policy to drive competitiveness, creating jobs and lasting economic growth Financial and related professional services are the UK’s biggest exporting industry. We make a £67bn contribution to the balance of trade, helping to offset the trade in goods deficit. TheCityUK creates market access for its members through an extensive programme of work on trade and investment policy. To achieve this, we work closely with governments and the European Commission to represent member views and help deliver the best outcomes in international trade & investment negotiations. Allied to this, we have a country-focused programme to build relationships and to help open markets where our members see significant opportunities. We also have a strong focus on ways of influencing and delivering regulatory coherence through dialogue with regulators, governments & industry bodies internationally. INDEPENDENT ECONOMISTS GROUP TheCityUK’s Independent Economists Group (IEG) was established in April 2012 as a forum to bring together leading economists in financial and professional services. The IEG meets quarterly with the aim of providing independent and informed analysis of macroeconomic issues as well as key issues that the industry
    [Show full text]
  • Do Actions Speak Louder Than Words? Nonverbal Communication in Parliamentary Oversight Committee Hearings
    Do Actions Speak Louder than Words? Nonverbal Communication in Parliamentary Oversight Committee Hearings by Cheryl Schonhardt-Bailey, FBA Government Department London School of Economics and Political Science [email protected] http://personal.lse.ac.uk/schonhar/ Prepared for the Political Persuasion Conference Laguna Beach January 2016 1 “To me, public accountability is a moral corollary of central bank independence. In a democratic society, the central bank’s freedom to act implies an obligation to explain itself to the public. … While central banks are not in the public relations business, public education ought to be part of their brief.” (Alan Blinder, Princeton University professor and former vice chairman, Federal Reserve Board; (Blinder 1998: 69) ) “We made clear as a committee that we were going to look at the distributional impact of the budget in unprecedented detail. As a result, George Osborne responded by giving a lot more detail not only in the budget but also when he came before us. And there were some pretty vigorous and detailed exchanges about the distributional impact of the budget in that hearing. I think everybody gained from that experience. It certainly enabled a wider public to find out exactly what was going on in the budget and the Government was forced to explain its actions.” (Andrew Tyrie MP, Chairman Treasury Select Committee, commenting on Chancellor Osborne’s first budget (UK-Parliament 2011). 1. Introduction Public officials in modern democracies are conscious that their decisions and actions should be and are subject to scrutiny in the public domain. In the United Kingdom, this scrutiny is a statutory requirement and is conducted in formal parliamentary committee hearings.
    [Show full text]
  • Minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee Meeting Held on 4 & 5
    Publication date: 18 November 2009 MINUTES OF THE MONETARY POLICY COMMITTEE MEETING 4 AND 5 NOVEMBER 2009 These are the minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee meeting held on 4 and 5 November 2009. They are also available on the Internet http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/minutes/mpc/pdf/2009/mpc1109.pdf The Bank of England Act 1998 gives the Bank of England operational responsibility for setting interest rates to meet the Government’s inflation target. Operational decisions are taken by the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee. The Committee meets on a regular monthly basis and minutes of its meetings are released on the Wednesday of the second week after the meeting takes place. Accordingly, the minutes of the Committee meeting to be held on 9 and 10 December will be published on 23 December 2009. MINUTES OF THE MONETARY POLICY COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 4 AND 5 NOVEMBER 2009 1 Before turning to its immediate policy decision, and against the background of its latest projections for output and inflation, the Committee discussed financial market developments; the international economy; money, credit, demand and output; and supply, costs and prices. Financial markets 2 Since the low in March 2009, the prices of many sterling financial assets had risen substantially. But during the past month most prices had been little changed. 3 UK equity prices had fallen by around ½% over the month. The fall was more than accounted for by a decline of around 5% in banking sector stocks, which had been prompted, in part, by announcements from competition authorities about banks that had received support from EU governments during the crisis.
    [Show full text]