For companies this could mean: -  Commitment to a net zero target (for scope 1, 2 and ideally scope 3 emissions) by a specific date;  -  Assessment and disclosure of how the transition to a net zero business model will impact strategy;  -  Short-term milestones to track progress; and  -  Details of governance, including whether executive compensation is tied to success and how risks are managed at the board level. These actions will also support growth and the FPC’s secondary objective. By pulling forward and smoothing the adjustment to net zero, it will minimise the costs of transition. And, crucially, by revealing which companies are aligned to net zero, and which are not, these actions will reveal the immense investment opportunities from the transition to net zero, increasing productive finance for sustainable infrastructure. VII. Conclusion  After engaging in an ambitious exercise to outline a Grand Unifying Theory of macroprudential policy, it is now time for a bit of humility. After all, if the experience of the financial crisis teaches us anything, it’s that we cannot anticipate every risk or plan for every contingency. And part of good macroprudential policy is literally planning for failure. 32  All speeches are available online at www.bankofengland.co.uk/news/speeches  32  Part of our job is to create a system that is robust to both the intensification of known risks and the crystallisation of Rumsfeldian unknowns. This is directly relevant for the current challenges associated with the coronavirus outbreak.
Resilience with a reason. That reason is the ultimate objective that unifies the Bank of England’s monetary and financial functions – the meaning of the central banker’s life which can be found in the opening sentence of our 1694 Charter – “to promote the good of the people of the United Kingdom”. It has been my honour to do so. 34  All speeches are available online at www.bankofengland.co.uk/news/speeches  34