There are two elements to this – the technical and the behavioural. The first is easier to fix. By technical I mean the complexity of the language used – the length and complexity of words, sentences and paragraphs. Currently, central banks score poorly technically, in part because they are themselves technicians. This comes at a cost in terms of accessibility. Fortunately, there is a large literature, and a sizable cohort of grammarians, who have considered how to shape language to improve its reach. For example, like many others I suffer from an acute case of hippopotomonstrosesquipeadaliophobia – that is to say, the fear of long words. And if you choked on that last sentence, so now might you. Simple words can make a dramatic difference to readability. “Inflation and employment” leaves the majority of the public cold. “Prices and jobs” warms them up. “Annuity” deep freezes the public, whereas “investment” thaws. 65  In general, the readability of text is improved the larger the number of nouns and verbs and the fewer the adverbs and adjectives. 66  This old mantra remains true in the Facebook age: Facebook posts are more  likely to be shared the more frequent nouns and verbs and the less frequent adverbs and adjectives. The ratio of nouns and verbs to adverbs and adjectives in an Elvis song is 3.3. In my speeches it is 2.7. 65  Smart (2016).
It is particularly important that fiscal policy be conducted in a way that ensures that reserves will be available during economic declines and that institutional conditions are created to facilitate necessary decisions for tighter fiscal policy to be taken on time. Decision-making and communication In the event of participation in monetary union, the Riksbank Governor would become a member of the ECB Governing Council, which is the highest decision-making body of the European Central Bank. I would then, just like all the other members of the Governing Council, have the opportunity to say what interest rate level I believe to be the best taking into account developments in the entire euro area. I would be a member of the Governing Council in a personal capacity, i.e. I would not be permitted to seek or receive instruction from other individuals or institutions. One issue that has been the subject of much discussion is the voting modalities in the Governing Council. Initially, the Riksbank Governor would always have the right to vote on interest rate decisions. This would change in the future, however. Once the number of Member States in the euro area exceeds 15, a new decision-making arrangement will enter into force. The Member States will be divided into groups according to size, and the voting rights will be rotated between the participants in  BIS Review 29/2003  5  the respective groups.