Through the years, the phrase has been simplified into “as safe as the bank”. As banks and central banks store gold and money in their vaults, their edifices have always been solid, protected by thick walls. In a figurative sense, it might be said that a safe and credible national monetary value relied for a long time on thick central bank walls insulating its internal workings from the general public. Until our time, central banks have been closed, both physically and figuratively. Central banks were shrouded in an aura of mystique, which they probably had a hand in perpetuating. Central bank governors worldwide refrained from saying too much, and what they did say often sounded cryptic. 1  The duty of confidentiality for Norges Bank employees is laid down in Section 12 of the Norges Bank Act. Violation of the duty of confidentiality is punishable under the General Civil Penal Code: “Any person who wilfully or through gross negligence violates a duty of secrecy which in accordance with any statutory provision or valid directive is a consequence of his service or work for any state or municipal body shall be liable to fines or imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months” (Section 121, first paragraph of the General Civil Penal Code).
The Governing Council supports the actions taken by the European Commission in the context of the Stability and Growth Pact and the subsequent outcome of the ECOFIN Council meeting last month. It is now necessary to remain vigilant in order to ensure strict adherence to the medium-term plans and rigorous implementation of the procedures of the Stability and Growth Pact. In order to further improve the fundamentals of the euro area and to put the expected recovery on a broad and sustainable basis, euro area countries must strengthen their efforts to implement comprehensive structural reforms. Over the past few years progress has been made with regard to enhancing the flexibility of euro area product and capital markets. Euro area countries have also made some headway in terms of improving the way their labour markets operate. These reforms, together with moderate wage developments, have contributed to the strong employment growth and the considerable reduction in unemployment witnessed in many euro area countries in the last cyclical upswing. However, it is worth noting that despite the continued high unemployment in the euro area, firms continue to report difficulties in terms of recruiting suitably qualified workers. This suggests that further improvements in the functioning of euro area labour markets and their ability to match labour supply and demand are needed. Evidence gathered in a recent Eurosystem analysis, which will be published shortly, supports this view. In this context I would also like to stress that structural reforms in different markets should not be seen in isolation.