Philip Hammond could face grilling from MPs over Bank of England's lack of diversity

Just one member of the Bank’s nine-strong Monetary Policy Committee is a woman, following the recent appointment of two new recruits to the interest rate-setting body

Nicky Morgan, chair of the Treasury Select Committee, has written to Mr Hammond requesting evidence to show that necessary efforts are being made to promote diversity in senior BOE roles (Getty)

Chancellor Philip Hammond may be forced to answer questions from MPs about a worrying lack of ethnic and gender diversity in the highest ranks of Bank of England staff.

Nicky Morgan, chair of the influential Treasury Select Committee, has written to Mr Hammond requesting evidence to show that necessary efforts are being made to promote diversity in senior BoE roles.

She has asked the Chancellor to confirm that recruitment processes for the Bank’s policy committees follow the rigorous standards required by all public appointments.

Just one member of the Bank’s nine-strong Monetary Policy Committee is a woman, following the recent appointment of two new recruits to the interest rate-setting body. Earlier this year, there were two female members on the MPC.

The Treasury Select Committee approved the appointments but has raised “wider concerns about the composition of the policy committees, and in particular about diversity at the most senior levels at the Bank of England”.

Ms Morgan said that the Treasury Select Committee “would be interested in taking evidence” from the Chancellor or the “most appropriate minister or senior official” to address the issue.

She added: “The Committee has taken the opportunity to emphasise that, when considering appointments within its remit, it expects candidates to have a proven track record in the area to which they have been appointed, as well as demonstrable personal independence.

“In the future, the committee expects to be provided, prior to appointment hearings, with diversity data on the candidates applying to the associated position.”

Ms Morgan’s letter asks the Treasury to publish data on the gender of applicants for positions on the BoE’s top committees.

Silvana Tenreyro is the only woman on the MPC after Kristin Forbes finished her term.

In July, Sir Dave Ramsden, who advised Mr Hammond and former Chancellor George Osborne on the Government’s austerity programme, replaced Charlotte Hogg, who had been the only other woman on the MPC.

Ms Hogg was forced to resign earlier in the year after failing to declare that her brother worked for Barclays – a bank she would have regulated.

Ms Hogg had replaced outgoing MPC member Minouche Shafik this spring.

Sir Dave was asked earlier this week whether he thought a woman was equally capable of taking on his role as deputy governor of markets and banking.

“There are definitely women capable of doing my job, of doing the governor’s job, of doing my old job at the Treasury,” he responded.

“I think there is a real issue with the gender balance in economics. It’s two-thirds male, one-third female. The problems go all the way back to schools – why girls don’t do A-level economics, why young women don’t go and study economics at university,” Sir Dave responded.

“There’s a live debate in the US at the moment, about the behaviours of economists that plays into this that may be deterring women from applying.”

He said this may be a problem with a “culture of economics”, that is not replicated in other professional field such as law, which attracts a far higher proportion of women.

The Treasury Select Committee this week launched a separate inquiry into the barriers facing women in the financial services industry. It is due to meet for its first evidence session next Tuesday.

Governor Mark Carney earlier this week said that the Bank’s research showed that its own gender pay gap was 21 per cent, and that this was due to men progressing to more senior positions.

There is no gap between men’s and women’s pay when comparing jobs of equal level, he said.