the ultra - accommodative monetary policy stance may increase over time. yet, higher interest rates are not likely to be to everyone ’ s liking. given the high level of government debt, central banks could find themselves coming under increasing pressure to pursue an accommodative monetary policy for longer than necessary. otmar issing, former chief economist of the ecb, recently issued a strong warning about a scenario in which monetary policy is dominated by fiscal policy : “ if the government gains control of printing money, there will be no stopping it at some point. [ … ] not straightaway, but sooner or later, inflation will follow, ” issing said. 14 as central bankers, it is our responsibility to not let it get that far. conclusion ladies and gentlemen, the government acted swiftly and comprehensively in the coronavirus crisis. finding a way to exit crisis mode will be of equal importance. we also must be careful about the direction we take in future in view of the implemented crisis measures. in his inaugural speech, max warburg emphasised the value of free world trade for the benefit of all countries. 15 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 14 o. issing, das ist ein tabubruch, interview by m. schieritz, die zeit, no 30 / 2020, 16 july 2020. 15 m. m. warburg, gesellschaft fur wirtschaftlichen wiederaufbau deutschlands und auslandskunde, spe - ech on the establishment of the ubersee - club, 27 june 1922, https : / / www. ueberseeclub. de / resources / server / pdf - dateien / maxwarburg. pdf page 18 of 19 deutsche bundesbank, directorate general communications wilhelm - epstein - strasse 14, 60431 frankfurt am main, germany, tel. : + 49 ( 0 ) 69 9566 3511, fax : + 49 ( 0 ) 69 9566 3077 presse @ bundesbank. de, www. bundesbank. de reproduction permitted only if source is stated. his speech was marked by the impact of the first world war and thus clearly highlights what a major achievement the european project is. our focus is now on moulding today ’ s europe into the shape we want it to take – not least in these challenging times. the ubersee - club ’ s values and traditions are a good guiding

, remember, help firms to retain the employees they are going to need once the crisis has passed. these benefits might also be used, though, to tie workers to enterprises that have no future, thereby deep - freezing structures that are past their sell - by date. the more protracted the economic problems, the more questionable it becomes to deploy short - time working benefits as a way of making ends meet. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 5 h. siebert ( 2001 ), der kobra - effekt – wie man irrwege der wirtschaftspolitik vermeidet, deutsche ver - lags - anstalt, stuttgart. page 8 of 19 deutsche bundesbank, directorate general communications wilhelm - epstein - strasse 14, 60431 frankfurt am main, germany, tel. : + 49 ( 0 ) 69 9566 3511, fax : + 49 ( 0 ) 69 9566 3077 presse @ bundesbank. de, www. bundesbank. de reproduction permitted only if source is stated. however, looking back at the financial crisis, during which entitlement to short - time working benefits had already been extended to up to 24 months, there is no evidence that structural change was held back. 6 rather, shorttime working benefits are regarded as a key reason why germany emerged from that crisis relatively unscathed. but perhaps the misguided incentives weigh more heavily today than they did back then. you see, the pandemic certainly has the potential to significantly accelerate the pace of structural change in our economy. to name just two examples, digital transformation could get a real boost, and the working world might change for good – with more people working from home, less business travel and fewer hotel stays. that said, there ’ s still no saying how far - reaching the long - term changes will be. most economists therefore consider it appropriate, given the severity of the crisis, to extend the period of entitlement to short - time working benefits to up to 24 months. yet still, it remains a balancing act. and as a quid pro quo, it would be important to scrutinise the merits of other special arrangements under the short - time working benefits scheme, such as the provision that the state pays the social security contributions. at the end of the day, the state needs to mitigate the risk that enterprises might use short -