In a speech Tuesday evening, governor Tiff Macklem said it was critical for the central bank to improve diversity on its staff, noting how it underscores its responsibility to consider its policies’ varying effects for different groups of people. (The Logic)

Talking point: “This conversation has sparked a debate about whether central banks are expanding their mandates,” Macklem said. “Whether we’re overreaching, getting distracted from our focus on inflation targeting and even a criticism that we should stay in our lane. My own view is that we are tasked with serving our citizens, not some of our citizens.” The Bank of Canada’s pandemic response has challenged it to think more deeply about how its monetary policy tools are affecting inequality, Macklem said, adding that it operates employee resource groups internally in order to retain a diverse talent pool. The bank launched its first formal diversity and inclusion strategy in February, after its only senior woman policymaker, Carolyn Wilkins, left in December 2020.