Professor Philip Lane:

On hiring practices, the vast majority of competitions are open. There is a mix of internal and external hires. Of course, pay levels are such that many in the private sector will think they are not high enough. There is, therefore, always limited interest in certain positions. However, the senior positions are really interesting and challenging. I hope that when we launch the competition to fill the new post of permanent deputy governor, there will be a good field. It should be a very interesting job for someone to take on. One needs a mix of people with long careers and fresh voices from outside. I have the written down somewhere the figure for the number of protected disclosures. I think the annual number is 40-something.