Speeches by Grady.

“The struggle we all face is that we are trying to look into the future and none of us is perfect at that. On my layman’s reading of table 1 in box C in the Bank of England MPC report—the section on the potential effect of tariffs—the balance of risks is that, while we do not know what it will do to inflation, the outbr…”

“As a quick-fire round—I don’t want to get into trouble—Professor Taylor, would you agree with my reading of the situation that, for the money in the pockets of my Glasgow constituents, the downside risks are higher than the upside risks?”

“I have a question for the Governor. Against this uncertainty, if the US were to impose tariffs on the UK directly, what would be your three biggest concerns?”

“You are always welcome to come.”

“You gave an interesting speech on this at King’s College in Cambridge a few months ago, so we might as well turn to that. Trade disputes are ultimately litigated at the WTO, which is a global institution.”

“You are quite right there. Two others are the IMF and the World Bank. There has been some discussion about the US withdrawing from the IMF and the World Bank. How damaging would that be to the UK?”

“That means a risk that people in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland will have less money in their pockets, ultimately.”

“Ms Greene, charts 2 and 3 in your very interesting paper illustrate the essential truth that we are a very open trading nation. The US and the EU are our two biggest trade partners. By the way, the data shows the same for Scotland.”

“It is, of course, but we are all part of one United Kingdom. It is ill advised for either of us to stray into that territory. No good will come of that. Are there any other international shocks or factors? We have elections in Canada, which your predecessor might have an interest in. France has gone off the radar, but,…”

“Professor Taylor, do you have anything to add to that?”

“The hon. Member for Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber (Brendan O’Hara) has provided a most eloquent job application. I was very pleased to read of the upcoming appointment of Lady Elish Angiolini. Not only would Lady Elish be the first Roman Catholic to hold the office of Lord High Commissioner, but she is incredibly wel…”

“Mr Byrnes, do you have a point?”

“I am very mindful that time is marching on and we may have votes, so am I taking it that the basic position of each of you on the panel is that it is good for basic rate taxpayers who are not in employer schemes and not good for many other people really, unless it is a supplement to what they already have?”

“Would anyone demur from what Ms Fairweather has said?”

“Just to set out the landscape a little bit so we are all on the same page, because this can get quite complicated, if I have a SIPP, I get tax relief on the way in, at my marginal rate of tax. If I have a LISA, I get a bonus, although obviously there is a withdrawal penalty. If I have an ISA, there are no additional ta…”

“It is 73p.”

“That is a brilliant answer: one word. Thank you very much.”

“As a final question from me, because time is marching on, does this discussion really illustrate the fundamental problem here: that it is all just too complicated for people to save in this country?”

“That is a very interesting point, Ms Fairweather. I suspect you would need a whole new inquiry on saving for self-employed people, actually. The Hargreaves Lansdown evidence is that 47.3% of outright homeowners are on track for a moderate retirement income. It is a bit late for complex maths, so that means over 50% are…”

“That is a very interesting point, Mr Byrnes. I suppose I would ask the rest of the panel whether they agree. Are we confusing two things: the rainy day fund you need for medical emergencies and all the rest of it, and long-term pension saving? Does that easier access for pension saving point away from this being a good…”