Quigley’s resignation stems partly from his mischaracterisation of the resignation of the central bank’s governor Adrian Orr in March.<\/p>\n
And despite the Reserve Bank’s statutory independence, top politicians are continuing to offer their own opinions on what it should be doing.<\/p>\n
They are, of course, following the example of Luxon himself – who maintains that the situation is not a mess, that the RBNZ has “incredibly strong and experienced governance”, and “disagree(s) completely” that its reputation has been damaged.<\/p>\n
If you’re wondering what on Earth is going on, the whole saga is laid out below.<\/p>\n
Orr not to be<\/h3>\n![\"Adrian](\"https:\/\/media.rnztools.nz\/rnz\/image\/upload\/s--1N2rQhJx--\/ar_16:10,c_fill,f_auto,g_auto,q_auto,w_1050\/v1701203805\/4KYSK2T_Adrian_Orr_custom_crop_1_jpg?_a=BACCd2AD\")
<\/p>\nAdrian Orr and Nicola Willis.\u00a0<\/span>Photo:\u00a0RNZ<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\nControversy has surrounded the resignation of the former Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr.<\/p>\n
Orr led the RBNZ from 2018, through the Covid-19 pandemic, and – despite significant criticism from National and ACT ahead of the 2023 election – continued in the role until early this year.<\/p>\n
Orr’s resignation on 5 March came just a day before he had been expected to open an international economics conference being hosted by the RBNZ, so when then-board chair Neil Quigley at the time said it was for “personal reasons”, speculation about what that could be was rife.<\/p>\n
Willis said she was not going to “characterise the reasons” but she had been aware for a few days of discussions between Orr and Quigley about a possible resignation, and said questions about that were for the board to respond to.<\/p>\n
Her previous criticisms in opposition of the Reserve Bank’s handling of the pandemic highlighted a difference of philosophy on how to approach fiscal strategy.<\/p>\n
The ACT Party has also been particularly critical of Orr’s style.<\/p>\n
Orr also championed the approach requiring the banks to hold more capital – in case of financial shocks like the 2008 global financial crisis – which the central bank is\u00a0now looking to reduce<\/a>\u00a0in a move recommended by a government-led committee of MPs and celebrated by the coalition.<\/p>\n![\"Reserve](\"https:\/\/media.rnztools.nz\/rnz\/image\/upload\/s--jWVDjiHD--\/ar_16:10,c_fill,f_auto,g_auto,q_auto,w_1050\/v1741148772\/4KB0HYR_Image_4_jpg?_a=BACCd2AD\")
<\/p>\nNeil Quigley.\u00a0<\/span>Photo:\u00a0RNZ \/ Samuel Rillstone<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\nQuigley held a\u00a0media conference later in the day<\/a>, but his explanation\u00a0did little to quell<\/a>\u00a0the speculation.<\/p>\nHe said it was not an issue of performance, conduct, or policy, and acknowledged there were some discussions about the central bank’s funding agreement with the government, but framed it as a decision Orr had come to after completing his work.<\/p>\n
“He’s achieved a great deal that he set out to do when he took the job, we’ve been through a lot, not just the pandemic, but all of the changes the bank has been through over Adrian’s term as governor,” Quigley said.<\/p>\n
“So Adrian feels that he has done the job and he has inflation under the target range and he feels positive about that.”<\/p>\n
Adrian Orr and Nicola Willis.\u00a0<\/span>Photo:\u00a0RNZ<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Controversy has surrounded the resignation of the former Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr.<\/p>\n Orr led the RBNZ from 2018, through the Covid-19 pandemic, and – despite significant criticism from National and ACT ahead of the 2023 election – continued in the role until early this year.<\/p>\n Orr’s resignation on 5 March came just a day before he had been expected to open an international economics conference being hosted by the RBNZ, so when then-board chair Neil Quigley at the time said it was for “personal reasons”, speculation about what that could be was rife.<\/p>\n Willis said she was not going to “characterise the reasons” but she had been aware for a few days of discussions between Orr and Quigley about a possible resignation, and said questions about that were for the board to respond to.<\/p>\n Her previous criticisms in opposition of the Reserve Bank’s handling of the pandemic highlighted a difference of philosophy on how to approach fiscal strategy.<\/p>\n The ACT Party has also been particularly critical of Orr’s style.<\/p>\n Orr also championed the approach requiring the banks to hold more capital – in case of financial shocks like the 2008 global financial crisis – which the central bank is\u00a0now looking to reduce<\/a>\u00a0in a move recommended by a government-led committee of MPs and celebrated by the coalition.<\/p>\n Neil Quigley.\u00a0<\/span>Photo:\u00a0RNZ \/ Samuel Rillstone<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Quigley held a\u00a0media conference later in the day<\/a>, but his explanation\u00a0did little to quell<\/a>\u00a0the speculation.<\/p>\n He said it was not an issue of performance, conduct, or policy, and acknowledged there were some discussions about the central bank’s funding agreement with the government, but framed it as a decision Orr had come to after completing his work.<\/p>\n “He’s achieved a great deal that he set out to do when he took the job, we’ve been through a lot, not just the pandemic, but all of the changes the bank has been through over Adrian’s term as governor,” Quigley said.<\/p>\n “So Adrian feels that he has done the job and he has inflation under the target range and he feels positive about that.”<\/p>\n<\/p>\n