United Kingdom Parliament Treasury Committee Update: Committee Sets Out Expectations For Bank Of England And FCA’s Brexit Analysis

• Correspondence from the Chair to the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement and future framework, 10 October 2018 ( PDF 84 KB)
• Correspondence from the Chair to Mark Carney on the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement, 11 October 2018 ( PDF 126 KB)
• Correspondence from the Chair to Andrew Bailey on the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement, 11 October 2018 ( PDF 72 KB)
• Treasury Committee

The Committee asked the three organisations to publish their analyses in good time before Parliament comes to vote on the Brexit deal. Mrs Morgan has today written to the Bank and FCA to further clarify the Committee’s expectations about the timing and content of this work.

The Committee has appointed Professor Sir Stephen Nickell, former member of the Office for Budget Responsibility’s Budget Responsibility Committee, as a specialist advisor to work on its Brexit inquiry, and specifically to advise on the economic impact of the Withdrawal Agreement. Mrs Morgan has written to the Chancellor to request that Treasury officials will be allowed to engage with Professor Nickell as part of his work.

Mrs Morgan has also asked Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England, to provide public clarity on the briefing he gave to Cabinet on 13 September, which was reported as containing a forecast that house prices would fall by a third in a ‘no deal’ scenario. 

Chair's Comments

Commenting on the correspondence, Mrs Morgan said:

“Parliament must be provided with a full and frank assessment of the consequences of implementing the Withdrawal Agreement and future relationship with the EU before it comes to vote. Without such analysis, any vote cannot be considered meaningful.

“When negotiations between the Government and the European Commission have concluded, the Committee has asked the Bank and the FCA to publish its analysis in good time before any Parliamentary votes on the Withdrawal Agreement and future relationship.

“The Bank and the FCA should provide analysis of any deal agreed, and of a ‘no deal’ scenario, in the event of a breakdown in negotiations or a parliamentary vote against the Withdrawal Agreement. They should also consider providing analysis for the scenario in which the UK leaves the EU with no trade agreement at the end of a transition period.

“This analysis will ensure that Parliament’s decisions are based on the best possible evidence.”

Further information

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