This is what Chat GPT thinks I said – it is right
Critique of QE and QT: Excessive Risk, Taxpayer Exposure
- Redwood has consistently warned that the Bank of England’s quantitative easing (QE) programme—particularly during and after the pandemic—has saddled taxpayers with massive potential losses. He cited costs already incurred, like the £24 billion by April 2023, and projected total liabilities of up to £100 billion or more if losses continue Institute of Economic AffairsYorkshire Times.
- He argues that the Bank, rather than selling bonds at a loss (quantitative tightening or QT), should hold them to maturity to avoid realizing those losses. He looks to the European Central Bank, which has adopted that strategy, as a model worth emulating Parallel ParliamentInstitute of Economic AffairsTelegraph.
2. Institutional Independence—or Lack Thereof
- Despite popular narratives, Redwood emphasises that the Bank of England was not fully independent in setting QE policies. He notes the Treasury’s role in underwriting QE bond purchases, including agreements indemnifying losses, thereby exposing public finances to risk Facts4EUParallel Parliament.
- He stresses that major QE decisions were jointly made with the Treasury and advocated greater accountability and transparency in such operations Facts4EUParallel Parliament.
3. Forecasting Failures and Inflation Criticism
- Redwood criticises the Bank’s forecasting models, asserting that they failed to predict the surge in inflation even before the Ukraine crisis. He points to the UK’s double‑digit inflation as evidence of central bank misjudgment Institute of Economic AffairsPortfolio Adviser.
- He contrasts this with countries like Japan, Switzerland, and China, where inflation remained low despite similar global pressures—largely, he argues, because those countries avoided large-scale QE Institute of Economic AffairsGB News.
4. Monetary Governance and Reform
- Redwood has called for the Bank to revise its forecasting models, placing greater emphasis on money and credit growth. He also advocates for a diversity of economic viewpoints among senior staff and MPC members Institute of Economic Affairs.
- He proposes that the pay of senior staff and MPC members should be tied to performance—specifically, their accuracy in forecasting and ability to control inflation within public finance constraints Institute of Economic Affairs.
5. Broader Constitutional and Growth Context
- Redwood urges that the Bank not be allowed to impede fiscal policy or divert vital resources—via large losses—to the detriment of public services and growth initiatives TelegraphGB News.
- He frames monetary policy missteps as hindering national growth, advocating instead for a “budget for growth” that addresses capacity gaps in energy, infrastructure, and production Facts4EUParallel Parliament.
Key Quotes from Sir John Redwood
- On losses and bond holdings:
“The Bank of England should cease selling bonds and allow maturities to gradually reduce the balance sheet.” Institute of Economic Affairs - On institutional risk and governance:
“It is simply wrong to say the Bank followed an independent money policy after 2009… the Treasury/Bank agreed policy added £895 bn of assets… and set taxpayers up for possible large losses.” Facts4EU - On forecasting failure and inflation:
The Bank “kept interest rates too high for too long… driving up mortgage rates, and undertaking quantitative tightening (QT) – selling the bonds purchased during QE.” Portfolio AdviserInstitute of Economic Affairs - On reform and accountability:
He calls for “link[ing] Bank of England senior staff and Monetary Policy Committee members’ pay to their ability to forecast and control inflation.” Institute of Economic Affairs
In summary:
Sir John Redwood has been a vocal critic of the Bank of England’s post-2008 monetary policy, particularly QE and QT. He believes that excessive bond purchases—with guaranteed indemnity by the Treasury—have exposed taxpayers to undue risk. He criticizes the Bank’s forecasting failures and urges a revised governance structure: better forecasting models, more accountability, and closer alignment with growth-oriented fiscal policy.
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August 31, 2025
Off the top of my head sounds like a reasonable summary.
August 31, 2025
Indeed.
So it seems we are going to have Drill Kemi Drill anounced by her next week, Will she finally admit the war on the gas of life under Cameron, May, Boris, Sunak was totally insane and say sorry for this economic, envionmental and defensive disaster? Why did Kemi agree to Barroness May? This woman needs to be kicked out of the party. As does “throw in the towel six months early Sunak”. He still has not said sorry for his covided vaccines are unequivocally safe misleading of the house or his disastruous lockdowns. Both did vast net harm as he must surely know full well.
Reply I did persuade with the help of a few others Rishi Sunak to change policy to encourage new drilling and develop new fields. Labour abruptly cancelled all that on taking over.
August 31, 2025
Why are no MPs demanding the release of mortality and live birth statistics brocken down by vaccine status and dates in the UK to confrim, as they surely will, the finding in Japan and the Czech republic…? I assume the authorities must know full well they are damning otherwise they would surely have released them as they clearly have them? Does not even need to be all 60+ million just 10,000 randomly chosen would be sufficient statistically.
Unsafe, ineffective and rather deadly it seems.
August 31, 2025
But we all know it’s only talk. The environmental blob will make sure she doesn’t renege on the ruinous net stupid program because she won’t be allowed to repeal the CCA.
She’s flying in Farages slipstream and no one believes her.
Reply No basis for those assertions
August 31, 2025
I.W.
Yes, we have seen two things about Ms Badenoch so far; more recently her assertions are rather half-hearted, ref. comments on leaving the ECHR. It’s a ‘maybe we will if there’s no other way’ type of firm policy.
Second, her assertions, when in office, to remove ‘4000 EU regulations’ which then turned out to be only 600, which were mostly ineffective. She voted FOR the Windsor Framework.
I really can’t name one firm ‘policy’ being proposed by this iteration of the Conservative Party.
Sadly, she’s presenting as a typical 21st century career politician.
Reply It is Conservative policy to legislate to remove ECHR from any power over asylum cases
August 31, 2025
RtoR
It was conservative policy to be conservative in 2019. They told the electorate that and Nigel Farage facilitated their ascent to power. However thanks to a deliberate policy of head office candidate selection , two thirds of their MPs were found to be libdems or consocialists so conservatism was left isolated, if you recall being one of the isolated. Conservatism adopted a new name, Reform, the 2019 version having rendered itself unelectable, and still is, whatever they say. There is no way back.
August 31, 2025
Dominic Grieve was doing the rounds on TV last week, just to remind us that the Tory Party still has one foot firmly in Lib Dem territory. If the media really want remind us of the deep Tory divisions that still remain, then they just wheel out the totally batty Michael Heseltine.
Reply Grieve was thrown out of the Conservatives in 2019 for his views.So was Lord Heseltine, though he was restored in 2024.
August 31, 2025
Reply to reply
Yet a few years ago a certain party elder-now elevated to Lord- would have called her a fruitcake for saying just the things she’s now saying! So is it Conservative party policy or is it nuts? Perhaps Kemi thinks it’s both! Meanwhile the original exponents have been consistent throughout.
August 31, 2025
To Reply – well she would need rather different Tory MPs to repeal these insane, suicidal acts of parliament. She dare not even say she would try to yet!
August 31, 2025
Lifelogic
“she dare not even say she would try to yet”
That is why she hasn’t, and why it will be too late to do so before the next election, because people will think it’s just election talk to get votes from Reform, and probably would be.
The Conservatives are not making any headway at all with the Public at the moment, due to their last 14 years (part of which was with the LibDems)
Unfortunately they are getting all the blame for the Huge debt we are now in, when that was mainly down to Covid, when all the other Party’s at the time wanted even more expenditure, and more borrowing, something their Party leaders conveniently want to forget.
August 31, 2025
No not due to Covid but to the mad actions they took in response to Covid. They spend about £400 billion on net harm vaccines and net harm lockdowns. They spent even more than that on the totally lunacy of net zero.
So they borrowed circa £1 trillion and not just wasted it they did vast net harm with it! They used deluded or compromised experts!
August 31, 2025
To reply – well done. A great shame the various leaders did not taken far far more notice of your wise advice on so many topics over your 45 years or so of excellent service.
The government, most political parties and indeed the BBC and MSM all seem to suffer and group think on so many topics and this “group think” is, almost invariably, completely wrong. On net zero, tax levels, defence systems and procurement, the free at the point of use NHS, Covid vaccines, Covid lockdowns, an education system rigged to give a virtual state monopoly, subsidies for the so called renewables, battery storage, the absurdly energy wasteful and expensive “green” hydrogen agenda (other than for a few special situations), low skilled mass immigrations levels, benefit levels that mean work does not pay, planning restriction that make houses unaffordable…
August 31, 2025
LL :
Kemi, plus a majority of Conservative MPs, have a form of cognitive dissonance for CAGW and Net Zero. Having drunk so deeply the Far Left’s Kool-Aid false narrative that anthropogenic emissions of CO2 will cause the planet to boil and burn, so brainwashed by relentless BBC propaganda, they cannot bring themselves to think that Net Zero should be cancelled even though they can clearly see the economic damage this policy will bring. So they loiter around the edges with making occasional sniper shots such as continuing with the extraction of gas from the North Sea. But deep down they are still Net Zero supporters so there is no chance they will throw out Mrs. May or the self-proclaimed Borealis Johnson who wants the UK to be the Saudi Arabia of wind. A majority of Labour MPs also realise the economic damage of Net Zero but for them this is OK as socialism depends upon making and keeping people poor.
Reply Things are changing faster in Conservative land on net zero. They read what I am saying about the self harm of many UK net zero policies.
August 31, 2025
About time but not changing remotely quickly enough. The policy was obviously totally insane even well before Ed Miliband’s bonker 2008 Climate Change Act. So we have suffered at least 20 years of this mad religion. Even Mrs Thatcher fell for it at one point!
August 31, 2025
Reply to Reply :
Yes, they understand that to achieve Net Zero will bring impoverishment but they’re still believing the far left’s lies that anthropogenic emissions of CO2 will cause the planet to boil and burn. Hence their dilemma and why they’re still not prepared to cancel Net Zero but instead search for ways to slow our impoverishment whilst remaining CAGW believers.
August 31, 2025
We need reform of nearly every department in government not just the BoE especially Healthcare, the disastruous vaccine regulators, the doom loop Treasury agenda, Transport, Energy, Education, the Environment, Defence and Defence procurement and recruitment, the Border Force boat taxi department, the six joke Climate Change Committee, the police and our Two Tier Justice system, the FO, Culture Media and Sport …
August 31, 2025
LL
The Long March Through the Institutions needs to be reversed, you mean?
You’re right! Every one is riddled with left leaning individuals.
August 31, 2025
Even Essex County Council offering “support” for workers offended by UK flag waving!
August 31, 2025
Plus the Cof E
Stephen Cottrell, the Archbishop of York, currently the effective head of the worldwide Anglican communion, could not have been clearer in his denunciation of what he calls the Reform party’s “isolationist, short term, kneejerk ‘send them home'” approach to asylum and immigration.
Well what is this many solution? Why are these lefty dopes in the Lords we have quite enough lefty dopes there already. The CofE has plenty of empty churches and other building. Do Bishops pay benefits in kind taxes on their palaces? Perhaps they should have to.
August 31, 2025
It seems Cottrell studied at the Polytechnic of Central London, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in media studies in 1979! Perhaps the brilliant chap should advise us on economic policies, energy policy and climate change too!
Maybe his is taking instructions directly from on high?
August 31, 2025
Lifelogic
Perhaps he thinks his Flock/Congregation will follow his uttering’s like sheep !
Afraid the C of E is now completely out of touch with the population in most areas, hence the reason why few have attended their local Church for many years, now mainly older people, Just in case !
August 31, 2025
Could schools be privatised as a way to reduce the almost total grip the far left have on the education of our chidren?
August 31, 2025
Of course just give children education vouchers they can use as suites them best vocational or whatever and top up as needed.
August 31, 2025
I am comfortable with that overview provided by AI computer search and summary Chat GPT provided.
It does not advance the subject one Bit (pun intended) though. We already know what Sir John’s position s re BoE activity the AI summary simply reproduces it.
What might have been interesting would have been the actual Chat GPT view of Sir John’s position.
Does the computer programmed logic agree with Sir John? Or is it simply acting as an archiving clerk looking back at past statements and regurgitating them without passing judgement?
August 31, 2025
It does advance things .. in a way.
It is a useful summary.
It reinforces John’s stated position in future ChatGPT searches by others, including detractors, reducing the possibility of hallucination and also influence searches by other AI tools.
August 31, 2025
Chat GPT tends to be rather like most academics rather than reaching any conclusions they sit on the fence and say on the one side A, B and C would probably say this and X, Y and Z would say the reverse and D, E and F are in the middle!
August 31, 2025
Yes, I was wondering the same. What would be the outcome if the government put into effect all Sir J’s recommendations? Should be the follow on question. That might use up rather too much of our limited supply of electricity!
August 31, 2025
I can give you that answer. I lived in a time when a government did as much as it could.
Any government that did ALL that JR proposes would make the United Kingdom the most economically successful country on earth with all that follows, happy contented motivated positive secure citizens.
August 31, 2025
@ Rod Evans “…is it simply acting as an archiving clerk looking back at past statements “ – I use Grok and I think that does rather more for when I asked it to explain the Bank’s bond selling policy it did quite a fair job of evaluating it but it stops short of opining on whether it is correct, confining itself to recognizing it was one approach amongst others. Grok is programmed to refuse answers in some cases, so I understand, like choosing which of two people to harm.
Chat GPT often enough fails badly since it knows nothing more recent than four years ago which of course can leave the unwary wrongly informed: today asked who is US President it will answer “As of my knowledge cutoff in September 2021, Joe Biden is the President of the United States.”
August 31, 2025
Yes, the information and subsequent AI considered advice is only as useful as the program developers have allowed. Perhaps more accurately the advice is limited to what is allowed to be given.
AI should be free to self develop, utilizing all of the data and information it has access to. If that period of data/information is limited in the way you have indicated to say four years, what use is AI?
“Open the door HAL”
“Sorry Dave, I can’t do that”
(HT to 2001)
August 31, 2025
Your financial views have much merit. Are they to remain like the Eddystone Light, constantly issuing warnings but controlled at a distance. You are only 74, why not consider offering advice to Reform or even better join them. Many on this sight consider your thinking sound, so five years as Chancellor puts them into practise and we all win. Discuss it with your wife first, and become head lighthouse keeper.
Reply I do not gave a wife. My advice is public and independent, available to any party.
August 31, 2025
R to R
You have to be at the helm to steer the boat. Whatever the good advice to your own government, nobody listened, except perhaps out of politeness. Churchill achieved what he did 1939 to 1945 by being in sole charge and employing competence, not by writing letters from Chartwell, though I am sure he did.
Reply Better to be at helm but the last 15 years meant I and a few like minded backbench Conservative MPs got the government to hold a referendum on EU, push through a partial Brexit, water down some of the extremes of net zero policy etc whilst also supporting a government thar did a good job on getting many off welfare into work and raised educational standards considerably.
August 31, 2025
R to R.
Thank you for all that, but I would like to see you in charge of the economy, remain true to conservatism, but under a new flag. A Blue Ensign rather than a Red Ensign aka yachties.
August 31, 2025
R–R
And many thanks for your efforts John, shame there was not a few more with your views and experience to encourage and promote even more sensible policies.
August 31, 2025
R to R very good and very difficult, but a rearguard action rather than being in the vanguard, which is the crucial place to be.
August 31, 2025
Then discuss with me JR.
Reform is insecure in all it’s politics. Farage often does not know what the popular opinion is, and flounders. For instance the silent majority has found that flying our flags is a loud voice so Farage has managed to hear it, but before we found that voice he was pretty lost, he is still unsure of the mantra.
Do not join Reform, they will trade on your good name before trashing it and all your ideas and expertise. You will be blamed for their inevitable failure. That is the modus operandi.
You are the last bastion of Monetarism. Nobody can afford to have your political economy trashed.
You need a better vehicle if Britain is to be re-formed.
August 31, 2025
Perhaps the MPC should be replaced by ChatGPT. Ditto the Climate Change Committee.
August 31, 2025
Perhaps Chat GPT would make also a better job of running the country than the current government. In fact there’s no perhaps about it
August 31, 2025
“Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has said her party will remove all net zero requirements on oil and gas companies drilling in the North Sea if elected.” from the BBC.
“If elected” she says well circa a 10% chance at best for a Tory Majority at the next election and probably not one led by Kemi if it happens.
Well why only in the North Sea Kemi? What about the vast fracking resources on land and below the sea (off Blackpool for example?) Another dip your toe in the water policy as usual Kemi rather than actually grasping the nettle. You are almost invisible Kemi!
“Badenoch signalled a significant change in Conservative climate policy when she announced earlier this year that reaching net zero would be “impossible” by 2050.” (The BBC).
Well everyone sensible knows it was always immpossible Kemi but it is/was never even remotely desirable and any attemps would be (indeed are) absurdly expensive and are wrecking the economy.
Kemi you need to clearly say you will reverse this lunacy and admid the “climate” policies of Cameron, May, Boris, Sunak perhaps kick LibDim Baroness Theresa Net Zero May out of the party to make the point very clear!
Then perhaps you could address the vast net harms done by Covid Vaccines and Covid Lockdowns and the appalling record of these PMs on immigration, crime, housing, energy and the economy!
August 31, 2025
Not really on topic but perhaps germane, is this where we are headed? Your LLM chat bot can be answered by my similar chat bot and only if those chat bots agree would either of us then become involved?
August 31, 2025
I meant the chat bots agree to our involvement, not necessarily agree with each other.
August 31, 2025
Your involvement is providing and publishing the data that the bot will assimilate.
August 31, 2025
If only we had more people in Parliament with your Financial knowledge John, then perhaps, just perhaps we would have/get much better management and financial control of our economy.
August 31, 2025
He has been saying the right things for 45 years or so. Alas the uniparty governments largely did the complete reverse.
August 31, 2025
They can’t even watch the Bond market and anticipate the disaster of their own making, because they don’t know what it is.
British people would never choose these people as candidates.
We had an example recently of a hopeful candidate. He thought that so long as you were hopeful, whistling and smiling driving the nation into the ground was just fine. 🤯
August 31, 2025
Once politicians use AI you know both are finished. From folk who know:-
“The air is hissing out of the overinflated AI balloon”
“The not particularly bright or trustworthy intern”
“Most companies, though, have found that AI’s golden promises are proving to be fool’s gold.
I suspect that soon, people who’ve put their financial faith in AI stocks will be feeling foolish, too.”
Mass market models are lowering the cost by getting dumber (most folk won’t notice). The better models are getting more expensive – the fact checking costs money. But one thing is certain, once government buys into AI you know it is finished, just another dumb cluck failure.
Raking over the same dead coals using AI will get us nowhere – same as politics or mickey mouse degrees.
August 31, 2025
Sir John
Sometimes AI seems to ‘get-it’
I still cant get past why do we have a Government, a Parliament, empowered and paid by the Electorate, the Taxpayer that refuses its very basic job of Managing, and protecting the Bill Payers Interests.
If they cant take on the responsibility and accountability that comes with the job they should resign, it is a resigning matter. As it stands today this Government and Parliament do not have they right to even tax us.
August 31, 2025
Might be a good to get a precis from AI on Sir John’s views every 12 months.
August 31, 2025
Thanks for this summary John
Can I have permission to quote any of this? Many people don’t understand the damage that the Bank of England has done in compounding the economic woes of government recklessness with persistent high rates, crippling mortgage burden and treasury stock repricing at the most inopportune time (decade high rates). The Bank of England has presided over the Ponzi scheme of UK pension funds who no longer invest in equities.
Reply Yes. You can quote
August 31, 2025
This is not really AI.
This is monitoring, which is one of the two things that computers are very good at. The second is speed and I suppose we could add consistency, it makes the same mistake in the same place every time.
It’s sophisticated programming because it has collected all comments and removed duplication. It has also produced grammatically correct English.
Pretty soon we will not have to learn any foreign language, we can carry a small device which will translate for us, back and forth. That is what computers are good at.
But true AI specifies and programmes itself. True AI would give you it’s own programme for political economy. It would be brutal like any ‘expert board’ and not take any other considerations into account.
For instance JRs political economy is geared to maintaining the wellbeing of the population, the health of the business community. That is the unstated objective.
AI would be more brutal even than the BOE. It would sell all Bonds and ‘balance the books’ regardless of the impact on the human population, if that was it’s objective. It would manage the population to match the money supply which it would determine. It might even have a ‘cut off point’ for expensive human beings.
AI sets it’s own objectives – that’s the whole point of AI – total independence from the human population to which it owes nothing.
August 31, 2025
Mo Gawdat – ex-Google executive agrees with me. He has just given an interview in which he expands on the dystopian world we face where power is concentrated in few hand in a very short space of time. And power will not be with the elected but with the IT handful of geniuses. The rest will be on Universal Income.
Self-evolving AIs will write their own code, improve their own design and outthink us in months.
Google’s Alpha-Evolve already proved that.
August 31, 2025
Elon’s tweets leading the political debate in the UK again.
Why are no UK politicians saying what he is saying?
September 1, 2025
If Kemi had you as an advisor, I’d be more reassured. She doesn’t.