But if you wish to know who is at fault for hollowing out the welfare of middle-income workers and the American economy, kindly do not look at me or my colleagues at the Fed. When you go home tonight look at yourself in the mirror. We at the Fed are providing more than enough monetary  BIS central bankers’ speeches  3  accommodation. You elect our fiscal and regulatory policymakers. It is time for them to do their job, to ally themselves with us to achieve a fully employed, prosperous America. Only you, as voters, have the power to insist that they craft policies that are needed to restore American prosperity. Please do so. Have a most pleasant evening! 4  BIS central bankers’ speeches
If we want the overall labour force to grow and the share of foreign workers to be stable, then we have to allow net immigration. That’s the bottom right of the triangle. If we want zero net immigration and the foreign worker share to be stable, then we have to accept zero labour force growth. That’s the top of the triangle. The trilemma represents the constraints. I’ve put them in rather stark terms, to reflect vividly the trade-offs we face. Collectively, as a society, we have to decide which corner of the trilemma we want to be at, or which corner we want to be close to. I’ll argue later on that we may be able to soften these constraints and reach more balanced outcomes. But the fundamental constraints and choices implied by the trilemma are real. 5 / 17  BIS central bankers' speeches  Are there ways to escape the trilemma? Or at least soften its hard constraints? There are two solutions that have often been mentioned. First, an increase in fertility. Second, an increase in resident labour force participation rate. A recovery in Singapore’s TFR is the best and most lasting solution that we can have, but its positive effects on labour force will only occur in the very long run. So here’s another thought experiment: Assume our TFR rises steadily from the current level of 1.2 to 2.1 (replacement rate) over next 15 years. Obviously, it will have an immediate impact on resident population and its effect will cumulate over time.