MNI BRIEF: BOE Must Tackle Swollen Balance Sheet Issue

With the Bank of England's balance sheet set to swell to GBP1 trillion and with the central bank having failed to reduce it all between the end of the financial crisis and the onset of the Covid shock, it must now address the issue, Governor Andrew Bailey said Monday.

His remarks, at a Resolution Foundation event, underscore why he is keen to press ahead with the review of tightening policy, with Bailey expressing sympathy for the case for early unwind of quantitative easing in order to give policymakers room to act if another crisis hits. "We do have to take very seriously what room we have for manoeuvre on the central bank balance sheet and how we respond to the next crisis," he said.

Former BOE Deputy Governor Charles Bean told MNI last week that the Bank need to address QE unwind.