The public commitment that the Committee will do whatever it takes to hit the inflation target is central to the conduct of monetary policy. It underpins the credibility of the inflation target. This commitment is more important than ever in the current environment of unprecedented shocks and unconventional policy measures. Recent events have raised the question of whether the Committee could provide even more information about its policy strategy by committing to keep interest rates low for a particular period of time or until the economic outlook evolves in some specified way. The difficulty is in designing such a commitment that would be both useful and that the Committee would be willing to adhere to. A commitment to keep interest rates low for a certain period of time runs the risk of being overtaken by events. The past eighteen months has demonstrated only too well how rapidly the state of the economy can change. I truly have little idea as to how long Bank Rate will need to be maintained at its current low level in order to meet the inflation target. As such, it would make little sense to commit to a rule that suggested I did! The potential benefit of a state contingent commitment – in which the MPC commits to maintaining Bank Rate at its current level until the economic outlook has evolved in a particular way – is that it may aid the public’s understanding of how the Committee is likely to react to economic developments.
They are based on spurious international comparisons since other central banks – such as the Bank of England – do not print their own banknotes, do not (yet) incorporate the banking supervisor and do not perform tasks such as the management of  BIS central bankers’ speeches  3  over indebtedness, which is entrusted to the Banque de France by law. More than 200,000 households debt applications processed every year is no mean feat! We have already made a great effort over the past few years as our staff levels have been cut by nearly 20% in ten years. And we will continue with this effect; but it is based on a detailed analysis of our activities and requires substantial investment in order to increase productivity. Our programme is ambitious but in keeping with the reality of the tasks we perform and respectful of our employees. 4  BIS central bankers’ speeches