The European Central Bank gets criticised for many things these days. On one issue it can offer little by way of defence: the complete lack of women in its top ranks. Gender balance has been “blatantly disregarded” at the euro’s monetary guardian, according to Sharon Bowles, chairwoman of the European Parliament’s economic and monetary affairs committee. She has a point: not one member of the ECB’s six-strong executive board or 23-strong governing council is female.
One possible (sort of) excuse is that female central bankers are a rarity globally. Barely more than 6 per cent of governors globally are women, according to the central bank directory.
But the ECB has a chance to make amends. Ms Bowles’s outburst came as the parliament prepares to review candidates for a forthcoming vacancy on its executive board. ”One has to ask why important and influential EU bodies such as the ECB systemically fail to select female candidates. The argument that there are no qualified women for these positions cannot be taken seriously,” she said in a statement.
Any chance of a woman getting the job? Scarcely. As I have noted in previous Money Supply posts, Spain, Luxembourg and Slovenia are pushing their own candidates for the vacancy. All three are male. What will be decisive is whether Spain wins the argument that, as one of the eurozone’s four largest economies, it has a right to a place on the board. As far as I know, the ECB’s gender balance is not an issue.
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