with growth close to trend - and with the imbalances within the economy beginning to adjust. in any event i am totally confident that mervyn king, my successor from july, with his deputies, andrew large and rachel lomax, and with the mpc, will be ready to adjust policy in either direction as the prospect changes, and that they will be as totally committed as i have been to maintaining stability and hitting the government's inflation target, as a necessary condition for sustainable growth. that will provide the best possible context for the continued development of your business, and the important contribution that you make to the economy. i, myself, of course, will be looking for a new lease of life in retirement! i'm not aware that it's a lease product any of you actually provide. given our ageing population perhaps you should develop one though you'd better be careful how you market it! in any event i wish you well.

the time to push ahead on tackling climate change speech given by andrew bailey, governor of the bank of england corporation of london green horizon summit, mansion house 9 november 2020 all speeches are available online at www. bankofengland. co. uk / news / speeches and @ boe _ pressoffice it is a great pleasure at least to have the opportunity to meet virtually. today, i want to focus on how we ensure that we get back to the vital subject of tackling climate change and the role of the financial system. first, i want to say what a pleasure it is to be sharing a platform today – so to speak – with mark carney. as i have told mark quite a few times, timing is everything, and midnight on march 15th was an interesting choice of date to hand over as governor. but let me also say that in everything that has happened since at the bank we have benefitted from the many things that mark did during his term, and for that we owe him great thanks. mark has gone on to push forward his deep commitment to tackling climate change, and the role of the financial system in doing that. there have been times since march when we have faced very stark decisions in the face of the covid crisis. we decided in the spring to prioritise preserving people ’ s jobs and livelihoods in this emergency, and as far as possible the businesses that provide employment and the life blood of the economy. these short - term interventions did not discriminate on the basis of climate change. i believe that was the right response. in the face of such an emergency in all conscience it was not right to say to people that they would be denied a livelihood because their employment was of the wrong sort for the climate. i say this very starkly, because there is no point hiding from reality. but that does not mean that we have abandoned our commitment to tackle climate change and indeed the uk government has made a firm commitment to transitioning the economy to net zero by 2050. if we needed reminding of the importance for the uk and the 125 other countries who have made similar commitments of delivering on them, this year we have seen record wildfires in australia and california, record - breaking temperatures in the arctic circle and of course the powerful witness of sir david attenborough. these are a striking reminder of the need for sustained action by government, public authorities and the private sector. and it is important that, even in the face of the