The Governor of the Bank of England should look up the successful trade figures since 2016

The Governor implied in his remarks at the Mansion House that trade and the economy had been damaged by Brexit. He failed to look up the figures which show our exports up by more than 50% since 2016, well ahead of price inflation over the period. He failed to mention the huge success of our services exports, catapulting us from fourth place in the world to second place in the table of service exporters. He failed to read the excellent pieces by Fact4EU that set out the successes by countryĀ  or to consult the ONS detailed numbers.

Let me remind him from the ONS. 11 of the top thirty export destinations are EU and 19 are rest of the world. We export three times as much to the USA as we export to Germany, our largest EU trade partner.Ā  Our trade with the rest of the world has been growing faster than our trade with the EU now we are out, as it did when we were in the EU. The main reason is we excel at services and the EU does not buy enough of those. They sell better into English speaking countries with UK styles of law and business process. In 2023 our exports to the EU amounted to Ā£356bn and to the rest of the world Ā£505bn, 41% EU and 59% rest of the world.

More importantly our trade with the rest of the world delivered a Ā£75 bn trade surplus in the year to August 2024, compared with a continuing massive deficit of Ā£100bn with the EU. Brexit has not prevented the EU continuing to export large quantities of energy and goods to us, as they remain tariff free under the Free Trade Agreement we have with them. Services now account for 55% of our globalĀ  total trade.

It would be good to export more goods and energy. The main reasons growth in goods has been slower is not Brexit but the UK’s industrial and net zero policies. Two of our top six goods exports are oil and refined oil products. The UK government is pursuing a rapid run down policy for our North Sea and onshore oil and gas prospects and refiningĀ  so that acts as a headwind to growth in goods trade. A third leading area has been cars. Accelerated switching to electric vehicles by government policy before the UK has the ability to design and make enough good affordableĀ  EVs is again hitting export volumes. We do not produce enough electricity as policy is to close coal, older nuclear and some gas planets before there are sufficient replacements. Instead of exporting electricity we become a net importer when the wind does not blow and the sun does not shine.

The Governor when analysing reasons for slow growth since the 2008-9 crash of the economy should look at the erratic and error strewn Bank of England policies that allowed and created a big inflation to be followed by a credit crunch.

90 Comments

  1. Peter
    November 16, 2024

    Well Bailey is still in place despite constant criticism. He was appointed under a Conservative government too.

    Your radio 4 interview, along with Labour MP Stella Creasey, raised the point about services, but the BBC let her bang on about increased bureaucracy harming exports to Europe. Seemed to me she was allowed to do most of the talking.

    Her statement that manufacturing was also important was allowed to hang there without suffficient emphasis being allowed for the self harm of high energy prices due to net zero.

    The BBC only wanted to promote one view.

    1. Ian wragg
      November 16, 2024

      Bailey is no friend of Britain but takes his orders from the wef/UN
      The fact that he was appointed by the lib dem Gideon tells it all.
      Yesterday the head of engineering was quite adamant that Milibrains scheme to rewire Britain is a non starter due to lack of engineers and fabrication capacity.
      Three is another 32 cables being laid to mainland Europe which should ensure we continue to pay the highest prices for electricity in the world.
      In periods of low wind and solar Europe can charge us maximum. Remember last year, paying Ā£2000 per mwh to maintain the frequency.
      We’re rapidly heading for third world status under these clowns and the tories basically agree with them.

      1. Lifelogic
        November 16, 2024

        Correct.

      2. MFD
        November 16, 2024

        Totally correct , we must take every opportunity to destroy this lefty army which is doing best to sink Britain!

    2. PeteB
      November 16, 2024

      You are right Peter, Brexit is in the same box as climate change. It must be treated as fact that both are bad for us. As I noted yesterday net-zero impoverishes the masses for the benefit of a few. Being an EU vassel state had the same outcome.
      Those in power cannot allow sensible debate on these topics else the quality of the Emperor’s new clothes may become apparent.

      1. Lifelogic
        November 16, 2024

        “Brexit is in the same box as climate change (and Covid Vaccines and vast over regulation and huge taxes). It must all be treated as fact that all are bad for us.” despite all the abundant evidence that the reverse is true.

        Why did Reeves feel she had to lie on her CV to become Chancellor? After all Thatcher made John ERM Major Chancellor and he left school with just three O-level passes in History, English Language and English Literature? She is clearly

        Reeves has half decent A levels in sensible subjects and a PPE degree. Alas like Dennis Healey (Double first Greats I think) no common sense. Dennis IMF Healey even thought 98% income tax was a great plan. But then a 20% tax each generation on farms is probably nearly a 100% of income from Farms. Plus it will hugely devalue their farm land assets. All the income from the farm after income tax will have to be saved for about a generation to pick up the 20% tax IHT death duties.

        Interestingly Reeves A levels have disappeared from Wiki as has the PPE subject now it just says Oxford so you might assume she read something rather more impressive. What subject they chose is often rather more informative than the University.

        1. hefner
          November 16, 2024

          Wikipedia, 16/11/2024 16:30 Rachel Jane Reeves
          Four A-levels in politics, economics, maths and further maths.
          PPE Univ.Oxford, 2:1 BA
          London School of Economics, M.Sc in Economics.

          1. Martin in Bristol
            November 16, 2024

            A chess champion as well.
            Come on hefner don’t miss out the best bits.

      2. MFD
        November 16, 2024

        šŸ‘šŸ» time for rebellion

    3. Michelle
      November 16, 2024

      That is standard BBC and mainstream media practice in general.
      It has been so for a very long time.

  2. agricola
    November 16, 2024

    Why does he continue in employment. I know nothing about banking, but with your guiding articles on my desk I woumd be willing to give it your best for half the price.

    1. Lifelogic
      November 16, 2024

      It would be hard to be any worse than Bailey or Carney.

    2. IanT
      November 16, 2024

      Beats me! He didn’t exactly shine at the FCA and there were other experienced BoE candidates available.
      Keep banging the trade deficit drum Sir John, we need to start making some ‘wealth’ (surpluses) for our country and the Rest of the World is growing & open for business.

      1. Mitchel
        November 16, 2024

        Most of the rest of the world is aligning with BRICS.

        1. IanT
          November 16, 2024

          They may well (eventually) do so Mitchel but they will still want to continue to be both ‘customers’ & ‘suppliers’ – whatever currency they/we prefer to use. So it’s really just a matter of setting an acceptable exchange rate (& it always has been). I think we used to call it “barter” a long time ago….

          1. Lynn Atkinson
            November 16, 2024

            Setting exchange rates is a job for the Market.

      2. John Hatfield
        November 16, 2024

        Presumably Bailey works for the same employer as the prime minister. Neither work for the UK.

  3. Peter
    November 16, 2024

    Meanwhile, ā€˜ Trump aide tells UK: Choose US free market over ā€˜socialistā€™ EUā€™. (The Times)

    Bailey was softening us up for rejoining EU eventually. The American says that will not help British exports to the USA. ā€˜Chlorinated chickenā€™ is mentioned again as a huge stumbling block.

    A good negotiator would find a deal that suited both sides but excluded an item like chlorinated chicken that our food standards prohibit.

    We will move closer to Europe with Labours big majority. They will just need to find more excuses to do this.

    1. Peter Wood
      November 16, 2024

      Yes, your last para, 2TK stated yesterday that the ‘current deal is not good enough’ and he wants to reset and get a ‘better deal’. I think we know by now what that means. He referred to both security and trade. We’re looking at MUCH closer arrangements with a failing political construct, that now needs us a lot more than we need them. As usual, 2TK is blinkered by socialist dogma. and can’t read the road.
      PS, perhaps the German population will now start to look at their contribution of nearly 50% of the EU’s net budget, and start wondering if it’s worth while…

      1. Mitchel
        November 16, 2024

        Here’s something that will make you laugh:

        FT,14/11/24:”Germany tells its ports to reject Russian gas cargoes.”

        Sirius Report,15/11/24:”Germany is in receipt of its own contractural LNG from Russia via France where it is re-gasified and then pumped to Germany via internal pipelines.”

        1. Mickey Taking
          November 16, 2024

          Does any arrive at their ports? It would take a lot of tankers to distribute the LNG.
          France gets some work and income from Germany, probably badly need it!

          1. Mitchel
            November 18, 2024

            It makes Germany’s energy costs even higher-LNG is generally more expensive than pipeline on top of which there will be the transfer/conversion costs .

      2. hefner
        November 16, 2024

        In 2023 a German citizen was paying ā‚¬206.28 to the EU, an Irish one ā‚¬236.08 so things are slightly more complicated than what people might think.
        The sums are the ā€˜Haushaltssaldoā€™, the net difference between what is paid and what comes back.

        iwkoeln.de 12/08/2024 ā€˜Die EU and das Geld: Wer zalht, wer bekommt?ā€™, IW-Report 34/2024.
        Anybody interested should look at Table A-1. The payers are in mā‚¬:
        Germany 17,433, France 8,957, Italy 4,504, NL 3,382, Sweden 1,389, Ireland 1,250, Denmark 1,139, Austria 1,128, Finland 840, Luxemburg 107. So a total of 40,129 mā‚¬ of which Germany pays 43.4%.

        The three biggest beneficiaries in volume are Poland 8,154 mā‚¬ (+216ā‚¬ per person), Romania 5,994 (+315) , Hungary 4,561 (+476). The three biggest beneficiaries per capita are Estonia (+627), Croatia (+602) and Latvia (+602).

        1. Mickey Taking
          November 16, 2024

          when Bailey and Starmer have destroyed UK enough, we might join in one of the last two sectors, receiving not contributing!

        2. Peter Wood
          November 16, 2024

          Thank you, very helpful data.
          Do you think the German voter will think they can afford to keep paying that amount under their new economic circumstance, AND keep supporting Ukraine, while the rest of EU nations — France– gives only a fraction of the amount?

        3. Lynn Atkinson
          November 16, 2024

          This is actually a false premise because ā€˜what comes backā€™ is spent on what the EU thinks it should be spent on. Thus the loss of control is pretty comprehensive and results in calls like the one from a member of the Bavarian parliament, Ulrich Singer, who has called for ā€˜the German government to resign a year early because it has destroyed the German economyā€™, he confirmed that Bavaria was initially against anti-Russian sanctions and emphasized that the Bavarians want peace, but in Europe this is “considered extremism.”

          1. hefner
            November 16, 2024

            Why canā€™t you say that U.Singer is an AfD member of the Bavarian Parliament of 203 members with 85 CSU, 37 FW (regionalists) for the present Bavarian Government and 32 AfD, 32 Greens and 17 SPD for the opposition. So Ulrich S. disagrees, thatā€™s his right but it doesnā€™t seem to have had much impact.

    2. Lifelogic
      November 16, 2024

      What is wrong with Chlorinated Chicken it does not seem to do Americans much harm – so long as it is labelled as such you do not have to eat it. Much safer that taking the net harm Covid vaccines for sure.

      1. Lifelogic
        November 16, 2024

        The Covid Vaccines were pushed by the ex- Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. I am not a scientist (history and law Cambridge and Eton) but I know some scientist he said – while pushing these net harm vaccine for all (needed or not).

        1. Mickey Taking
          November 16, 2024

          He read LAW? Not much adherence to it though!

          1. Lynn Atkinson
            November 16, 2024

            Funny thing is that he worked in the oil industry. If the green lobby get their way both industries that too Welby in will be decimated. Maybe a just reward for that stupidity.

      2. IanT
        November 16, 2024

        I’ve eaten chicken in the US on quite a few occassions and never noticed any odd side effects (apart from the very large portions often served up of course). I’m not resident there, so perhaps longer exposure to KFC’s and Nandos would have given me a more pronounced green tint – who knows? šŸ™‚

      3. Lynn Atkinson
        November 16, 2024

        They donā€™t panic about chlorinated water!

    3. Dave Andrews
      November 16, 2024

      What’s wrong with chlorinated chicken? We have chlorinated people coming out of swimming pools.

      1. Peter
        November 16, 2024

        I don’t know the pros and cons of chlorinated chicken, though poultry and eggs are farmed in some atrocious conditions. I am currently eating a (British) duck. I don’t think mass farming has got round to them yet. Maybe in China?

        Anyway, my point is that chlorinated chicken should not be a showstopper – or perhaps an excuse – for not making a deal. Trump prides himself on being a deal-maker, rightly or wrongly.

    4. Mickey Taking
      November 16, 2024

      Whether to buy ‘washed’ chicken is up to the consumer.
      Will the High Street fast food vendors want to buy it? Certain corporate owners of the concessions ‘you accept the whole package’ may stipulate the ‘washed’ product.

    5. Berkshire Alan
      November 16, 2024

      Peter, simple and clear labelling (with minimal sized lettering), complete with Country of origin on the packaging, let the customers decide !

  4. Andrew Jones
    November 16, 2024

    Absolutely – and in addition to everything covered in your primer it is definitely not in his remit to even offer his opinion. Truly outrageous but adds weight to the theory that he is facilitating this shower of an administration.

    1. Berkshire Alan
      November 16, 2024

      Andrew agreed, no facts or figures used to argue his case,,
      Just an opinion like most Socialists

  5. Mark B
    November 16, 2024

    Good morning.

    What I think the Govenor of the BoE is trying to say, Sir John is : “Not me guv !”

  6. Wanderer
    November 16, 2024

    What a pity our kind host is not invited onto TV to give facts like these. Instead the legacy media beat the Remain drum and as a result if you polled Brits I think a large majority would say Brexit had damaged trade.

    We need honesty when it comes to debating public policy. Many people aren’t ideologues, they just want a better life for themselves and are not too bothered about the polity that delivers it. If important facts are hidden from them or misrepresented, it becomes impossible for them to assess where their best interests truly lie. So Remainers – idealogues – blame Brexit for ills that have nothing to do with it in order to swing public opinion. That’s no way to win an argument in private or in public life.

    1. Berkshire Alan
      November 16, 2024

      +1

  7. David Andrews
    November 16, 2024

    Apart from believing what he asserts, he is also pandering to the Starmer view. Once the Trump administration is in place the UK faces a choice on which way it will turn – enterprise driven vs state driven. On the evidence the choice will be the failed state driven, high tax model. It is already clear that the destructive potential of Labour taxes will decimate farming, private education, the charity sector as well as businesses. Growth will take a huge knock. Export earnings an even bigger knock from the damage to the education sector as schools close, leisure and hospitality venues close and businesses exit higher risk, lower margin markets. The government remains in denial about the destructive impact of the Reeves budget.

    1. Lifelogic
      November 16, 2024

      The first budget by a woman and a truly appalling one. She thinks he tax grabs will raise Ā£40bn they will be luck to raise anything net as people adjust to her lunacy. This with Milibandā€™s Net Zero lunacy on top is insane economic vandalism. plus the war on farmers etc. too.

      Reply It was a bad budget because the government failed to grasp the need to manage the public sector better and to appreciate higher taxes would damage growth. It is not because a woman delivered it. A lot of men advised and supported it.

      1. Peter
        November 16, 2024

        At least she is not one of LLs obsessions – a PPE graduate.

        Paul Johnson of the Institute for Fiscal Studies is a big favourite on the BBC. Today’s Times reveals he is also an Oxford PPE graduate. He is praised for his demeanour, not talking down to people and not being particularly interested in making vast sums of money for himself. Reading between the lines, his views mostly chime with those of the governing elite. Mariana is another favourite economis -telegenic and with views to the left. She was often on Question Time.

        I wonder if a Jehovah’s Witness or fundamentalist Protestant will ever feature on ‘Thought for the Day’?

        1. Peter
          November 16, 2024

          Mea culpa, it seems Rachel is a PPE graduate. More reason for LL to be unhappy.

        2. David Andrews
          November 16, 2024

          Paul Johnson supported the abolition of IHT relief on qualifying AIM investments, describing them as “mad”.

      2. Chris S
        November 16, 2024

        Yes, it just happened to be the first budget delivered by a woman, but also one who has been accused of falsifying her CV. Apparently there is some evidence to substantiate the accusation.
        Was she ever employed as an “economist”?

        Like 2TK, after the budget, her new nickname “Theeves” seems entirely appropriate.

      3. Lifelogic
        November 16, 2024

        Indeed and all the mail Chancellors since John Major have been appalling too, tax borrow and waste merchants.
        Reeves says she is not happy with 0.1% growth (even before her budget hits) and will take action to improve it. The action needed is first reverse all of the Reeves disaster budget, scrap net zero, scrap the workers rights bill, crap the war on Non Doms, scrap most red tape, scrap the war on private schools, landlords, car driversā€¦ stop the rigged markets – energy, transport, housing, bankingā€¦

      4. glen cullen
        November 16, 2024

        The UKā€™s energy regulator Ofgem on Friday awarded a $2.5 billion (Ā£2 billion) funding package for a subsea and underground cable between Scotland and northern England that would give North Sea wind farms additional access to the grid
        https://notalotofpeopleknowthat.wordpress.com/

  8. Donna
    November 16, 2024

    Bailey is a front man for the Globalist Institutions which are really controlling this country: the UN, WEF and IMF and they want us either in the EU or shackled to it.

    So economic and export FACTS don’t matter. He was appointed by the Remainer Establishment; he’s doing and saying what the Remainer Establishment wants. And, when the Not-a-Conservative-Government had the opportunity and ample justification, they didn’t sack him for incompetence so we’re stuck with him.

  9. Steve
    November 16, 2024

    The undermining of our economy by decision makers is related to the following. Some years ago a supranational group of people decided there are, or were going to be, too many little people on the planet for them to manage and control, to have power over, to really make money from. So they decided to use a well known human emotion, fear, to generate a situation where the human race would be undermined. One was climate change, a vehicle to deindustrialise western democracies and make the little people poorer, colder and less healthy. The other was a false pandemic, driven by a false testing regime (PCR) designed to enable the delivery of a toxic protein into as many humans. This toxin was deliberately designed to be manufactured by the human cell, to get everywhere in the body, but particularly the ovaries where lipid nanoparticles were already known to accumulate, to stimulate the bodies own immune system exquisitely designed to kill cells with foreign proteins within. Hence the proliferation of adverse events across body systems, including death, with heart, brain, kidney, eyes all affected, as well as sterilising women through immune system assault on the ovaries. Introducing medically assisted dying, and world war 3, is just the icing on the cake for those who want fewer of us little people.

  10. MPC
    November 16, 2024

    The Governor has Brexit Derangement Syndrome and is insulated from accountability. Ed Miliband has Fossil Fuel Derangement whereby facts mean absolutely nothing and citing them to him has no effect whatsoever. Read his comments to the Guardian this week while he is at the COP shindig. Thereā€™s no way he and his colleagues will change course as a result of informed, evidence based lobbying.

    My way of thinking continues to be expect the worst and you wonā€™t be disappointed – and might even occasionally be relieved. Mainstream politicians and their acolytes are actively engaged in the destruction of our way of life. Never before has there been such a yawning gap between the objectives of politicians and the interests of the voting public.

    1. Chris S
      November 16, 2024

      “Never before has there been such a yawning gap between the objectives of politicians and the interests of the voting public”.

      Never has a truer sentence been written about 2TK and his 20% government !

  11. Bryan Harris
    November 16, 2024

    Can anyone still believe that institutional figures are doing the best job they can. The BoE has gotten things so wrong so often that we can hardly trust this latest evaluation by the Governor of the Bank of England.

    When things go as wrong as they are going, when there is no need for anything to go wrong, points to an abuse of power.

    Why hasn’t the governor been replaced by now, sacked for deliberately taking us down a dark road – incompetence is too mild a description for what socialist establishment figures have been doing to our economy.

    Surely MPs should be screaming for blood at so many failures to remedy the economic failures, surely – but ha, too many MPs, it seems, believe in the same goals as the pernicious establishment figures.

  12. Handbrake
    November 16, 2024

    Bailey is there because he was appointed by Government – I don’t believe that he was making this speech on a whim or without correct information backing it up. If others think differently then why have they not got a platform or a suitable mandate to say so instead of always sniping in a singular way from the sidelines – and where are all of those ERG people who told us they knew everything – where are they now – am sick of the whinge.

    1. Bryan Harris
      November 16, 2024

      @Hanbrake — But he is not doing an honest job – he and his team get nothing right! Why do we continue to pay heavily for these socialists to ruin our country.

    2. Berkshire Alan
      November 16, 2024

      Did you get an invite to speak at the Mansion House?
      No neither did I or anyone else !

  13. Lorna A
    November 16, 2024

    Well said Sir John
    Sadly the Main stream media have failed to counter the inaccuracy of Governors speech

  14. Denis Cooper
    November 16, 2024

    The most important economic truth is that we have never recovered from the GFC, the global financial crisis.

    EU loyalists have highlighted Bailey’s claim that “The changing trading relationship with the EU has weighed on the level of potential supply”, but much less attention has been given to this earlier passage:

    https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/speech/2024/november/andrew-bailey-speech-at-the-annual-financial-and-professional-services-dinner

    “I am going to give three figures for three time periods from Bank staff estimates: the average annual rate of growth of potential supply in the UK economy and the contribution to that growth rate of productivity and of labour supply. From 1990 to 2008, the average annual potential growth rate was 2.6%. Productivity contributed 2.2pp and labour supply 0.4pp. After the financial crisis, from 2009 to 2019, the potential growth rate fell to 1.3% pa, of which productivity contributed 0.3pp and labour supply 1.0pp. From 2020 ā€“ 2023 the potential growth rate fell further, to 0.7%, with productivity contributing 0.5pp and labour supply 0.2pp. Covid was clearly a major factor here.”

    If anybody wants to visualise the enduring damage done by the GFC there ia a chart here:

    https://globalbritain.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Ewen-Stewart-Chart-1-UK-GDP-per-capita.jpg

    If the economy was a person we might say that in 2008 they suffered “life changing injuries” from which they have still not recovered, and just to give an idea of the scale of the cumulative damage I work out that if the previous trend growth rate had been restored GDP would now be 23% greater than it is.

    Later Bailey said “I am not going to spend any of the rest of my time seeking to diagnose what has happened to potential growth since the financial crisis.” but that is just what is needed – a proper diagnosis of the problem, not a false diagnosis that this is all down to Brexit which in reality has had only a marginal impact.

    Sir John, once again I appeal to you to use your high standing and extensive connections to start an organised cross-party, non-party campaign against rejoining the EU, which is the direction in which we are drifting.

  15. Roy Grainger
    November 16, 2024

    The Conservatives appointed Bailey for some reason despite his error-strewn time at the FCA so itā€™s a bit late to complain about him now. One thing that surprises me is that Starmer gave a specific target to have the highest growth rate in the G7. Well, UK growth in the last quarter was 0.1% and trending down – compare that to the current annual growth rate in USA which is 2.8% and likely to go higher under Trump. It is another target like Net Zero that is impossible for him to meet.

  16. Ukretired123
    November 16, 2024

    The governor of the Bank of England is expected to be independent of commenting on political matters and I was horrified when he was “Blaming Brexit” ( a spin story started by Remainers and Cameron years before 2016) instead of himself, Andrew Bailey, especially in plain sight when the facts proved otherwise,appalling truly appalling.
    He also blamed “Measurements” several times needed to be more accurately assessed instead of acknowledging the BOE model is outdated and needs radical improvement (SJR ‘s long time criticism that he never read).
    He repeatedly spun incorrectly “his ,Truths” Teflon coating himself for his future promotion.
    Meanwhile whilst Rachel Reeves was spinning Labour’s plan.They
    Today’s news
    ā€œReeves said she was an economist. Turns out sheā€™s just economical with the truth.ā€ Instead of the Bank of Scotland she worked in Retail Banking in Complaints Dept at Halifax / Fact checking required with these folks embellishing their dubious credentials.
    Complaints have mushroomed since she has been promoted to Chancellor and lied about not raising Taxes.

    1. Berkshire alan
      November 16, 2024

      UKR
      Reports today suggest that her CV has been altered in the last 24 hours and no longer includes the word economist
      Draw your own conclusions for the reasons why. ,
      Fortunately many have kept a record of the original, just in case ?

  17. Rod Evans
    November 16, 2024

    Good overview Sir John. As you point out, the trade deficit with the EU remains as it was when we voted to leave that controlling anti British organisation, Ā£100billion/year.
    The idea we needed to protect our trade arrangements with the EU as a priority post Brexit was simply a ploy by the EU to safeguard their financial benefits at our expense.
    We are still beholden to EU rules and regulations which are helpful to the EU and unhelpful to the UK.
    As for the BoE, the less said about their role in the EU’s retaining their economic control over UK affairs the better. Mark Carey was a well known WEF advocate and administrator of their policies. As For Bailey, he could style himself a new Bond, working for his majesty’s government on matters economic slaying villains…erm?
    My name’s Bond, Negative Bond,

  18. Ian B
    November 16, 2024

    I still cant get my head around his inference that we should look at the USA and how successful they as a reason to tie ourselves closer and come under the rule of the EU, with all its success.

    1. Mickey Taking
      November 16, 2024

      Quite simply both of the ‘friends’ want us closer, EU really needs some clear ability to thwart or seriously damage any aggression by Russia. USA wants us to continue pretending to be an independent fighting force, but allied to them (and depending on them before we pull triggers), and to press EU to increase spend and abilities saving them doing all the work and cost.

      1. Lynn Atkinson
        November 16, 2024

        Maybe Trump, half British, just wants to save the UK from the blasted continent? Remember that Musk and Kennedy are also genetically British. Blood is thicker than water and all that.

      2. Ian B
        November 17, 2024

        @Mickey Taking – ‘EU really needs some clear ability to thwart or seriously damage’ the UK’s ability to get on and look after its own people, which by its very existence they(the EU) see as clear competition to be held back and thwart its every move. ( Not forgetting among many instances fish in UK territorial waters are still controlled by the EU with them having unfettered access while our own fishermen are restricted)
        There is no Russian aggression to the EU, they are fellow travellers with similar views. The EU still has many trade links with Russia while the rest of the World has chosen a different path

  19. Paul Freedman
    November 16, 2024

    The BoE has one main job and that is to keep inflation at 2%. If the UK Money Supply is managed well and supply side shocks are identified and responded to (if necessary) that really is not a hard job to do.
    With all the data available (even publicly available now) there is no excuse for failing at that task – yet the BoE did. That reason is global groupthink. The BoE did not have the courage to do the right thing and act independently of other global central banks.
    Why is the Governor of the BoE talking about Brexit at all (unless it is importing inflation which it isn’t)? The Bank of England’s prolonged and ultra-loose monetary policy mistakes post-pandemic need to be under the microscope not Brexit.

  20. glen cullen
    November 16, 2024

    The government(s) should look up how much cheaper energy & fuel was before the climate change committee and net-zero

  21. Keith from Leeds
    November 16, 2024

    Andrew Bailey is a fool and should be sacked for those comments. But where is the MP in government who knows enough about how the economy works to sack him?
    It is obvious the Chancellor does not know how to get growth, nor does the PM, while he lets Ed Millibrand
    ruin the UK with Net Zero policies. When the blind lead the blind, they both fall into a ditch!
    Hooray for President Trump and Javier Milia ( may be spelt wrong ), two world leaders who see Global Warming/ Climate Change/Net Zero for the nonsense it is!
    When will a UK politician wake up?

    1. Lynn Atkinson
      November 16, 2024

      Even the leader of Azerbaijan knows that oil and gas is a ā€˜gift from Godā€™.

  22. glen cullen
    November 16, 2024

    237 criminals arrived in the UK yesterday from the safe country of France ā€¦

  23. formula57
    November 16, 2024

    Confidence in the Bank and its governor is surely at such a low ebb that change is now overdue.

  24. mancunius
    November 16, 2024

    Practically every single thing Bailey says and does confirms the commonsense view that he should never have been made Governor of the Bank of England. We were lucky in his two predecessors, but now he must go, and we definitely need far more rigorous scrutiny for the next appointment.

    1. mancunius
      November 16, 2024

      I seem to have (rather freudianly) forgotten his disastrous immediate predecessor. To clarify, I meant Mervyn King and Eddie George.

      1. Rod Evans
        November 16, 2024

        Thank you for that clarification. it was necessary.

      2. Lynn Atkinson
        November 16, 2024

        Melvyn King was ace!

  25. A-tracy
    November 16, 2024

    The Tories did a dreadful job of talking of any success stories after Brexit, growing service exports who has mentioned that? We were mainly left with services and fewer goods to sell not only into Europe but the whole world. People need to see the figures you are discussing. When comparing exports with % GDP is it per person, what population figure do they use (total population or just adults, does it include people here but not allowed to work as they wait for their paperwork to be processed).

    1. Berkshire alan
      November 16, 2024

      A T
      The Conservatives have done an appalling job of publicising anything properly over the last 14 years, hence but just one of the many reasons they got turfed out

  26. Original Richard
    November 16, 2024

    The Governor of the BoE is simply doing his job, as instructed by the UN/WEF/Uniparty, to prepare the country for re-joining the EU and at the same time sabotaging our economy so our Net Zero NDC ambition for an 81% reduction in CO2 emissions by 2035 can be more easily achieved.

    The facts, whether these are trade figures or climate facts or costs to decarbonise are unimportant. It is the final goals that matter and unfortunately for us the history of ideologies of the last century where ā€œthe means justifies the endsā€, such as occurred in Communist countries such as the USSR, China and Cambodia, shows us the direction in which weā€™re now heading.

    1. Mitchel
      November 16, 2024

      Not to mention the USA.

  27. Ian B
    November 16, 2024

    What would we do without Guido, as we have no Opposition in Parliament to stand up for the people they represent.

    According to Guido that one man, just one man is behind the raid on the Farming Community. The same one man according to Guido is all pervasive in all the so-called bodies that fight the UK trying to force a left-wing Marxists State us without ever being elected. His only authority is that of being a far-left academic, It would also appear that anyone that is not under ā€˜hisā€™ control is ā€˜hisā€™ target for tax raids

    https://order-order.com/2024/11/11/treasury-admits-new-farm-tax-is-based-on-research-from-only-one-adviser/

    The Far Left are trying to silence Guido in the Courts, it would appear primarily because there is no fully represented Opposition in Parliament ā€“ just the all dominating Uniparty

  28. Barbara
    November 16, 2024

    I hope you have sent a copy to him!

  29. Keith from Leeds
    November 16, 2024

    Sorry to be off-topic, but I just saw the farmers demonstrating at the Welsh Labour conference. I’d be surprised to see them on any MSM outlet, either on TV news or the main daily papers! I wanted to share this thought.

    You need a Doctor and a Solicitor occasionally, but you need a Farmer three times a day!

    1. hefner
      November 16, 2024

      BBC.com 16/11/2024 07:50 ā€˜Wales: Farmers protest as Starmer defends Budgetā€™.
      Guardian 16/11/2024 13:22 ā€˜Farmers protest as Keir Starmer says he will defend the budget ā€˜all day longā€™ā€™

  30. Ian B
    November 16, 2024

    The BoE at least its Governance has long passed its sell by date. As with all bodies that only exist with Taxpayer funding being thrown at them, they should never at anytime be seen as independent. Just to be handed taxpayer money it is logically sanctioned by someone that is responsible and accountable at the same time. If not why not. Those that hand over our money must then be held by us as the responsible one.

    Not being independent, subsidised by the taxpayer and then getting involved in the Politics of the Country without accountability or responsibility, maybe an EU thing but is not how Democracies are managed and run.

    The BoE needs to come back to being seen as the responsibility of the Chancellor and therefore the Government and then run through the department they control and manage, the Treasury.

    The Bank of England was nationalized in 1946 by the Labour Government after 252 years of being a stand-alone privately funded concern. The Question that should be asked, is has the BoE in its many current disguises since Nationalization improved our lives, delivered better services, been a greater positive to the County and its People than it was before?

  31. Ian B
    November 16, 2024

    A similar criteria should be applied for all entities that enjoy their existence on someone giving them OUR(Taxpayer) money. Quango’s, ONS, OBR and many more, do they offer more, at less cost than what was achieved without them?

  32. Peter D Gardner
    November 17, 2024

    What is the solution to the Bank of England’s poor performance? Are we to wait while it works it out for itself? There is no sign that it is self correcting. It doesn’t learn. Should governments be more involved, or would that make it even worse?

  33. Tim Shaw
    November 17, 2024

    Absolutely.

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