Asked some time before the latest increase in Bank rate whether he was comfortable with such a prospect, even at the risk of precipitating a recession, Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, replied “yes”.
During the 1990-92 recession, John Major, as chancellor, declared: “If it isn’t hurting it isn’t working.” But that was when the recession was well under way. And when he became prime minister, his chancellor, Norman Lamont, said: “Rising unemployment and the recession have been the price that we have had to pay to get inflation down. That price is well worth paying.” (This is often misquoted as “worth paying”, but accuracy matters.)
