That influence tempted 1  See Tobin (1972), “Inflation and unemployment”, American Economic Review, 62. Inflation can have large redistributive effects. Volatile inflation arbitrarily re-distributes wealth across borrowers and savers. And most recently, there has been a debate about how the stance of monetary policy has affected the distribution of wealth and income. In a series of recent analysis and speeches, members of the MPC have shown that, while distribution is not an objective of monetary policy, the evidence strongly suggests that policy since the crisis has been associated with better outcomes. 2  2  All speeches are available online at www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/Pages/speeches  2  authorities to promise low inflation in the future, but then to renege in order to boost activity. Electoral cycles 3  reinforced this predisposition. Firms and households began to anticipate these incentives, however, and eventually pre-empt them. The economy ended up in a worse equilibrium with higher inflation and 4  unemployment. Such time-inconsistent policies contributed to excessive inflation and higher structural unemployment in the UK during the 1970s and 1980s (when inflation averaged 9.5% and unemployment over 7.5%). In light of similar experiences, many societies came to recognise that macro outcomes can be improved by having society first choose the preferred rate of inflation and then delegate operational responsibility to the 5  monetary authority to take the necessary monetary actions to achieve that objective. By “tying the hands” of authorities, time inconsistency is resolved and better outcomes for both inflation and unemployment become possible.

Successful organizations depend on "open doors" to maintain transparency and build trust. But what will "open doors" mean to people in future digital work environments? How will the culture of a workplace change if we don't see each other face-to-face as often? In particular, how will we effectively train and mentor junior employees? Finally, current events demand that we be honest about the times we have not lived up to our own standards of equal justice under law and equal opportunity in our economy. Each of us needs to question our role in allowing systemic racism to persist. Our colleagues, stakeholders, and the public in general will ask how we will do better in the near term and the long term—and then they will hold us to it. Thank you for your kind attention, and thank you again to the Union of Arab Banks for hosting this discussion. 1 Lisa Kraidin, Thomas M. Noone, Sean O'Malley, and summer intern Gabe Rosen contributed to the preparation of these remarks. 2 Board of Governors, "Federal Reserve announces extensive new measures to support the economy," Press release (Mar. 23, 2020). 3 Federal Open Market Committee Statement (Mar. 15, 2020). 4 See supra n.2. See also Nicola Cetorelli, Linda S. Goldberg, and Fabiola Ravazzolo, "How Fed Swap Lines Supported U.S. Corporate Credit Market amid COVID-19 Strains,"  Liberty Street Economics (June 12, 2020). 5 "Agencies encourage financial institutions to meet financial needs of customers and members affected by coronavirus," Joint press release (Mar. 9, 2020).