Imperial economist re-appointed to Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee

Professor Jonathan Haskel has been re-appointed for a second term to the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee.

Professor Haskel, Chair of Economics at Imperial College Business School has been a member of the Monetary Policy Committee since September 2018. He will start his second term on the MPC on 1 September this year.

The independent Monetary Policy Committee makes decisions about the operation of monetary policy. It comprises of the Governor of the Bank of England, the three Deputy Governors, one member of the Bank with responsibility for monetary policy and four external members who are appointed by the Chancellor. External members may serve up to two three-year terms on the MPC.

"His work on monetary policy has been effective and insightful, and the Committee will continue to benefit from his expertise.” Andrew Bailey Governor of the Bank of England

The appointment of external members to the MPC is designed to ensure that the Committee benefits from thinking and expertise in addition to that gained inside the Bank. Each member of the MPC has expertise in the field of economics and monetary policy. They are independent and do not represent particular groups or areas.

Commenting on this year’s appointments to the MPC, The Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak said: “I am also delighted to re-appoint Professor Jonathan Haskel to the MPC and I am confident his expertise in productivity and innovation will continue to play an important role.”

The Governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey said: “I’m also very pleased that Professor Jonathan Haskel has been reappointed for a second term. His work on monetary policy has been effective and insightful, and the Committee will continue to benefit from his expertise.”

Reacting to the news of his re-appointment, Professor Haskel said: “I’m delighted to be re-appointed to the MPC for another three years. I look forward to working with current and new members of the Committee on the pressing challenges facing the UK economy in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic.”

Professor Francisco Veloso, Dean of Imperial College Business School said: “Congratulations to Jonathan on his re-appointment to the MPC. As one of the UK’s leading economists, Jonathan makes an important contribution to the life of the Business School through his research, teaching and intellectual leadership as well as the profile he brings to the School through his work on the MPC.”

Professor Haskel teaches on Imperial College Business School’s MBA programmes and his main research interests are in productivity, innovation, intangible investment and growth. His most recent book is Capitalism without Capital: The Rise of the Intangible Economy, co-authored with Stian Westlake. He was made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in 2018. In 2017, he was awarded the Indigo Prize, a new economics prize that celebrates radical and creative thinking in how to measure the modern economy. He is a non-Executive Director of the UK Statistics Authority and was previously a panel member of the Competition and Markets Authority.