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Philip Hammond today kicked off the search for a successor to Bank of England Governor Mark Carney with the appointment of headhunters specialising in recruiting senior women.
The 121st head of Britain’s central bank will take over at the start of February next year and inherit one of the most powerful posts in public life outside Downing Street.
Applications have to be in by June 5 with interviews over the summer and an appointment expected to be announced in October. Early favourites for the job included Andrew Bailey, the chief executive of City watchdog the Financial Conduct Authority, and LSE director Dame Minouche Shafik.
Canadian-born Carney was the first foreigner to become Governor when he took on the role in July 2013 and has twice postponed his departure to help steer the economy through the turmoil of Brexit.
Today the Chancellor told the Treasury select committee that the Government would be looking for a candidate “of the highest calibre” to serve an eight-year term.
He added: “The Governor of the Bank of England plays a very significant role in the international discussions between central bank governors and it is very much in our interests that we have someone who is recognised and respected at the highest levels of the international central bank circuit.”
The next Governor will be paid a base salary of £480,000, the same level paid to Mark Carney since 2013. However, he also had a housing allowance and pension contributions that took his total package to £881,574 last year.
The search will be led initially by Soho-based recruitment firm Sapphire Partners, which describes itself as “champions for women” and specialises in “securing female talent”. There has never been a female Governor. Earlier this year Sapphire secured former Ofcom head Dame Colette Bowe and Virgin Money UK boss Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia as external members of the Bank’s Financial Policy Committee.