Bank of England start process to replace governor Mark Carney

Mark Carney

The Treasury is drawing up the job advert for the next governor of the Bank of England ahead of Mark Carney’s departure from the role next year.

Carney will step down at the end of June 2019 after six years in the position and the advert for his replacement will be published on the government’s public appointments website and in a financial publication, according to the Press Association.

A Treasury spokesman said “we will begin recruitment for the next Governor of the Bank of England in due course,” but would not comment on a timescale for the search.

Recruitment is likely to begin in the next couple of months, in line with the practice when Carney was appointed.

Contenders for the Governor role

Rumoured contenders for the position include Financial Conduct Authority head Andrew Bailey, Ofcom chief Sharon White and former International Monetary Fund chief economist Raghuram Rajan.

Carney, the former Bank of Canada governor, took over the Bank of England job from Mervyn King in 2013.

He cut interest rates for the first time in more than seven years in August 2016, to a record low of 0.25 per cent, months after the EU referendum in a bid to support the economy following the Brexit vote

This month the bank’s monetary policy committee voted to raise interest rates for the first time since May 2007 to 0.75 per cent, which is the highest level in the last 10 years.

The bank also upgraded its growth expectations for the economy. GDP growth is expected to rise to 1.8 per cent, slightly above the 1.7 per cent that was predicted earlier this year.

Carney’s successor will face the challenge of guiding UK banks and the economy through the Brexit process.

The governor warned last week that the possibility of no deal Brexit is “uncomfortably high,” as the pound fell to an 11-week low against the dollar.