Blanchflower, forecaster of recession, receives CBE
DAVID “Danny” Blanchflower, the Bank of England rate-setter who forecast the recession ahead of his fellow Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) members has been made a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.
Blanchflower, a US-based expert on labour economics, joined the Bank in 2006. His calls for interest rates to be cut to avoid an economic slump fell on deaf ears as the committee focused on keeping inflation in check. Blanchflower, who has now left the committee, said the honour, which was awarded for his services to economics as well as his role on the MPC, was a “nice return for all the work I have done and all the commuting”.
He had previously criticised what he called the MPC’s “one-tool, one-target” approach to monetary policy, which he argued had been insufficient to combat the recession.