His leadership in the areas of monetary policy, financial institutions, and Canada’s clearing and settlement systems has been invaluable. We will all miss his expertise, his enthusiasm, and his keen wit and intellect. The last time I testified before this committee was in the spring of 2002, because we were unable to arrange our regular meeting last fall.
You will recall that following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States, we quickly and aggressively cut our policy interest rate to shore up confidence and support domestic demand. By last spring, evidence had already started to build that demand was growing faster than the economy’s production capacity. Monetary policy actions must always be forward looking.