when they make a loan or a trade. based on obr forecasts and ons data. financial crises often lead to a long run reduction in gdp, with a persistent decline in output relative to pre - crisis trends. bank estimates based on the impact of historical financial crises in a sample of advanced economies, reported in brooke et al ( 2015 ), suggest that the average cost of a financial crisis has been 73 % of gdp, which translates to a cost of roughly £20, 000 per capita if a financial crisis had taken place in 2016. the bank of england ’ s financial policy committee identifies, monitors and takes action to remove or reduce systemic risks with a view to protecting and enhancing the resilience of the uk financial system. the fpc is not authorised to take action that is “ likely to have a significant adverse effect on the capacity of the financial sector to contribute to the growth of the uk economy in the medium or long term ”. see figure 1 of my article ‘ an evolving financial system : don ’ t leave it too late, simulate ’. peak amount of cash support in the form of loans and purchase of share capital. source : national audit office. all speeches are available online at www. bankofengland. co. uk / news / speeches losses that would have wiped out the entire british banking system in 2007 can now be absorbed in buffers of capital. stress tests show major banks at the core of the system can now not just withstand recessions in the uk and world economies that are deeper than the financial crisis, they have the capacity to keep lending to households and businesses. 6 this will serve the uk well in the next economic downturn, whatever causes it and whenever it comes. that ’ s the point of financial stability. it ’ s not for the benefit of finance. it ’ s for the benefit of the wider economy. regulation of finance is a means, not an end. that ’ s why it would have been a mistake to pursue the ‘ stability of the graveyard ’. easy though that may have been when the memory of the crisis was raw, and though it would have been beneficial in the bad times, it would have brought too great a cost at all other times. our mandate means everything we do must cost the economy no more than the benefit it brings in the bad times. that explains why, for example, we haven ’ t gone as far as some would argue for in making banks bulletproof to all possible shocks, however extreme and

previously thought. let me expand on these themes and say a few words about the key points of the governing council ’ s deliberations. of course, we discussed the evolution of covid - 19. while vaccination rates are generally very high in canada and the number of cases in most regions has declined, the pandemic continues to disrupt our lives. some of the disruptions were expected — we ’ ve never closed and reopened the economy before, so it was bound to be bumpy. but others, including labour - market frictions and supply disruptions, are more pronounced than anticipated. let me talk about each of these in turn. we ’ ve seen strong job growth in recent months. many sectors that were hardest hit by lockdowns earlier in the pandemic rebounded strongly as canadians resumed more normal activities. strong job growth has reduced the very uneven impacts of the pandemic, particularly for youth and women. however, the recovery of low - wage jobs continues to lag, many people are not working as many hours as they would like, and the large number of people who have been unemployed for more than six months remains a concern. 1 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches slack remains in the labour market. but even as the unemployment rate remains well above prepandemic levels, job vacancies have risen sharply. this is unusual. our recent business outlook survey indicates that labour shortages have intensified in two areas. the first is shortages of skilled trades and digital workers. this is a challenge that existed before the pandemic as well. the second is more pandemic - specific. as service businesses like restaurants and stores reopened this summer, many had trouble hiring workers quickly enough to meet the surge in demand. part of this reflects the reality that it simply takes time for companies to find workers with the right skills, and for workers to find the right jobs. repeated closures in some sectors and the challenges of working in high - contact jobs during a pandemic may also be affecting the workforce. about half of the unemployed workers who responded to the recent canadian survey of consumer expectations said they ’ re considering a move to a different industry. with lots of canadians still looking for work, and many employers hiring, we expect employment growth to continue in the months ahead. but the process of matching workers and jobs is more difficult than in a typical recovery, and it could take some time to work through these issues. governing council also spent time discussing supply chain