Bank of England: Government names economist Alan Taylor as new rate-setter
The government has appointed economist and Columbia University professor Alan Taylor to the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).
Taylor is due to join the MPC for a three-year term on 2 September, replacing current external member Jonathan Haskel – who has been on the committee since September 2018.
The four external are named by the government and can serve up to a limit of two three-year terms. Taylor’s appointment marks the first under the new Labour government following its landslide election victory in July.
The nine-strong MPC is responsible for determining the Bank’s base rate, which influences what other banks charge for loans such as mortgages and the interest they pay on deposits.
Its next monetary policy meeting, at which Taylor is due to vote, is scheduled for 19 September.
Taylor could not be reached for comment on his appointment or stance on interest rates.
He has co-written research papers cautioning about long-term risks from tight monetary policy but also flagging the effects of leaving policy too loose for long stretches.
The MPC voted to lower borrowing costs for the first time since March 2020 earlier this month by a knife-edge 5-4 margin. Taylor could push it to lean more dovish if he is more open to cutting rates than his hawkish predecessor, who opted to hold them at his final meeting.
Taylor, 59, is currently a professor of international and public affairs at Columbia University in New York. He holds other positions as a research associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research and the Centre for Economic Policy Research, as well as being a visiting scholar at the Bank of England.
He has previously worked as a senior advisor at Morgan Stanley, PIMCO and McKinsey.
“Professor Alan Taylor’s substantial experience in both the financial sector and academia will bring valuable expertise to the Monetary Policy Committee,” said Chancellor Rachel Reeves.
Andrew Bailey, governor of the Bank of England, added that Taylor brought “extensive knowledge and experience from his career in academia” at “an important time for the committee”.
Born in Wakefield, Taylor graduated from King’s College, Cambridge and earned a PhD in economics from Harvard University in 1992.