Economy: Alan Walters diary (Niehans seminar) [Walters opposes foreign exchange intervention to bring down sterling] [released 2012]

Document type:	Declassified documents
Source:	Walters MSS (Churchill Archives Centre): WTRS3/1/1
Editorial comments:	The full handwritten text of the 1981 diary can be read here. The document is 80MB, so may take time to download.
Importance ranking:	Major
Word count:	1p
Themes:	Monetary policy

Wednesday 7th January 1981

Size of rooms - I should have a bigger one! I leave bigger one for secretaries. Niehans seminar - bombshell; monetary policy has been too tight; but I had already said that in my Gilder interview in Nov. John Nott, however, very convincing. Middleton surprised. JN [John Nott] argues we should relax money base. I entirely agree but do not like his further suggestion of using direct interventions to bring Exch Rate down. Very risky - but better than ruining much of the export industry.

Read previous entry
Read following entry
Read first entry in 1981 (6 Jan 1981)