The Bank of England is being modernised, but don’t assume that things will work better. Gone are the days when its staff had a cosy relationship with City traders and held 'fireside chats'. Gone too is the 'raise of the governor's eyebrows' as a means of making the bank's policy wishes clear.
But while there is validity in the charge that past relations between the City and the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street were too clubby, the move away from 'constructive ambiguity' to 'clearly communicated' policy – in the words of deputy-governor Minouche Shafik – is not sufficient to ensure that the bank gets it right on financial markets going forward.
