What the Bank of England Governor got so very wrong

If you are going to be the public face of an organisation you need to understand how normal people will react to your words.

Bank of England Governor, Andrew Bailey, got it badly wrong last week when he called for workers to moderate their wage demands. A call that predictably and reasonably caused outcry and fury. Twitter and the airwaves exploded with venom: yet again the man in the street was being asked to ‘pay for’ some economic crisis.

In fact, telling other people or groups how to behave, comes pretty high on my list of stupid headline-worthy things to say. Unless you actually plan to kick a hornet’s nest, seek to persuade rather than demand. At least in public.

It is easy to dismiss this as ‘tomorrow’s chip paper’, as we used to say when news reached us via newspapers. But in my view, this is hugely damaging for Bailey, for the Bank of England and for the political establishment.

Millions of people are watching food prices rise and are seriously frightened by the jump in the cost of gas and electricity.  Bailey’s remarks are just more evidence that the ‘toffs’ that run the country are out of touch.

How could Bailey have got this so badly wrong?

Watching the interview through the Media Coach lens, anyone trained by us would spot it straight away: the Governor was just answering a question. It was a seasoned and ambitious journalist, BBC Economics Editor Faisal Islam, picking up a thread and asking the interviewee to fully articulate or agree with something that so far had only been hinted at.

Islam’s question: “Are you trying to get into people’s heads and ask them not to ask for too high pay rises?”

Bailey’s answer: “Broadly yes… in the sense of saying … we do need to see a moderation of wage rises. Now that’s painful.”

It’s clear that Bailey is trying to soften the blow here, but the words are out. A much safer answer might be:

“No but as policymakers we need to find ways to squeeze inflation out of the system again.”

Just to be clear, Central Banks are supposed to worry about inflation, and wage inflation is particularly damaging to financial stability. Every economist will know why Bailey would have been motivated to say what he did.

In the privacy of the high-ceilinged, panelled meeting rooms of the Bank of England there have probably been many discussions about how to keep wage inflation from getting out of hand.

However, no one would have advised a high-profile press conference to announce the public should moderate their wage demands. The fact that the idea comes in response to a journalists question, makes it no more acceptable.

By the way, if you watch the clip you can clearly see Faisal Islam is genuinely surprised that the Governor could say such a thing and realises – in that moment – that he just got a scoop.

Casual listeners to current affairs programmes would be astonished to know the huge amounts of work that normally go into avoiding this sort of gaffe. Key statements are planned, and predictable questions have carefully prepared answers. Very few people are experienced enough in public life to instinctively avoid this sort of landmine.  Most need the help of others to consider the implications, risk assess both statements and reactive lines.

Every PR person’s nightmare is the leader who is used to being the smartest person in the room, who thinks dealing with the media is something any intelligent person can do without preparation or training, and who thinks PR advice is for the numptys.

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Lindsay Williams

Lindsay Williams is the founder and MD of The Media Coach. She has been an expert media trainer, communication coach and consultant since 1998. Lindsay hosts a range of bespoke communication skills courses which include Media Training, Presentation Training, Crisis Media Training and Message Building. Her particular forte is CEO Communication Coaching. Lindsay is the person to hire when you want C-Suite Communication Training.

Lindsay Williams is based in London but runs training sessions in multiple time zones, including the US, Europe, Africa and Asia, working online or travelling to host small and large scale training events. With 20 years of experience as a communications consultant with corporations and international organisations, Lindsay also runs Personal Impact Training and Pitching Via Zoom courses.

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