A lesson to be learnt from the global financial crisis is that central banks are finite, non-almighty institutions that should set the price of money and not have an employment mandate, according to chief economist from Investment Solutions, Chris Hart.

He cautioned that there was some agitation locally for exactly such an employment mandate to be implemented.

"That mandate should be kicked into touch," said Hart.

Hart on Tuesday told an audience of government officials and businesspeople at a conference organised by Omega Investment Research (whose chairperson is former MP Denis Worrall) that the US Federal Reserve has a dual mandate over inflation and employment.

"You effectively have the bastion of the free market and richest country with this, and some say if they do it then it should be good. But not at all – it is quite a bad thing," he said.

"With a dual mandate, what happens when inflation and employment rise? Which do you choose? The Fed has always defaulted to employment, which creates unsustainable and unviable economic activity," concluded Hart.

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