Helena Morrissey’s candidacy to become governor of the Bank of England indicates the Treasury could be looking beyond technical know-how in the successor to Mark Carney.
The Mail on Sunday revealed the LGIM head of personal finance (pictured) has interviewed for the role.
Morrissey was not named as a potential contender when the Bank of England job advert went out in April.
Tilney managing director Jason Hollands said: “It looks like quite a wide field of candidates are being interviewed, including some who are not immersed in the Bank of England’s orthodoxy.
“This may also be part recognition that under Mark Carney, the governor’s role as become a much more publicly visible one, and therefore a decision may have been taken to explore candidates who can bring experience to the job beyond the technical know-how of monetary policy and managing the organisation.”
In July, IMF chief Christine Lagarde was appointed to succeed Mario Draghi at the European Central Bank despite having no formal economics background.
Although Hollands noted a potential general election before January 2020, when Carney is set to step down, leaves the door open for a new chancellor to choose a candidate.
Labour has been advocating changes to the Bank of England’s mandate.
The Mail on Sunday reported around nine candidates have interviewed for the role.
Financial Conduct Authority boss Andrew Bailey is among the frontrunners for the job alongside London School of Economics head Minouche Shafik. Within the Bank of England, Jon Cunliffe and Ben Broadbent have also been touted.
