King has been forced to defend his position in the wake of the credit crunch and the Northern Rock debacle.

But, by royal decree, King will be governor for another five years after his present term of office expires on 30 June 2008.

In the statement announcing the governor’s reappointment, Chancellor Alistair Darling is quoted as saying King has “played a key role in delivering macroeconomic stability in the UK, and his leadership and experience will prove invaluable to the Bank of England”.

Come, come, Darling. King’s “key role” is surely debatable given what’s transpired during the past few months.

While I don’t necessarily believe King should be punted because of what’s happened, others do. You’d be a fool to think this appointment isn’t without controversy; it’s clearly going to be attacked by a range of people, with the Tories likely to be leading the charge.

Comments relating to King and "macroeconomic stability" are asking for trouble.

Mervyn King – Vital statistics•    Born: 1948•    Studied: King’s College, Cambridge University; Harvard University•    Previous employment: Cambridge University, Birmingham University, Harvard University, MIT, London School of Economics•    Non-executive director of the Bank of England: 1990 – 1991•    Chief economist and executive director: 1991 – 1998•    Deputy governor: 1998 – 2003•    Governor: 2003 – present

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