Bank 'set to name Bean as deputy'

The Bank of England is set to name its chief economist Charles Bean as the new deputy governor, a report suggests.

Mr Bean - who is believed to be the first choice of governor Mervyn King - will replace Rachel Lomax, the Sunday Times said.

The report comes after the Treasury proposed setting up a committee to advise the Bank on financial stability.

Observers say Alistair Darling's plan was an implicit criticism of the Bank's handling of the credit crisis.

MPC member needed

Mr Bean has held his role since 2000, and is part of the Bank's rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee.

His appointment could be made as soon as this week, the paper said.

The Bank's executive director Paul Tucker has also been in the running for the position.

Ms Lomax has opted not to serve another five-year term when her current one expires on June 30.

Because Mr Bean is already on the MPC, a new member will have to be found with analysts saying that Spencer Dale, currently on secondment at America's Federal Reserve, is a likely candidate.

The Treasury proposals to boost the surveillance role of the Bank follows the collapse and subsequent nationalisation of Northern Rock.

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