【Supplementary Reading】
A.The following are the words of the British National Anthem.Both the words and the tune are anonymous.The song was first performed in 1745 and became known as the national anthem in the beginning of 19th century.On official occasions，only the first verse is sung.
God save our gracious Queen，
Long live our noble Queen，
God save the Queen!
Send her victorious，
Happy and glorious，
Long to reign over us;
God save the Queen!
O Lord our God arise，
Scatter her enemies
And make them fall;
Confound their politics，
Frustrate their knavish tricks，
On Thee our hopes we fix，
God save us all!
Thy choicest gifts in store
On her be pleased to pour;
Long may she reign;
May she defend our laws，
And ever give us cause
To sing with heart and voice，
God save the Queen!
Not in this land alone，
But be God’s mercies known，
From shore to shore!
Lord make the nations see，
That men should brothers be，
And form one family，
The wide world over.
From every latent foe，
From the assassins blow，
God save the Queen!
O’er her thine arm extend，
For Britain’s sake defend，
Our mother，prince，and friend，
God save the Queen!
B.The following is an introduction of the Bank of England from the Bank’s homepage.
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom.Sometimes known as the“Old Lady”of Threadneedle Street，the Bank was founded in 1694，nationalized on 1 March 1946，and gained operational independence in 1997.Standing at the centre of the UK’s financial system，the Bank is committed to promoting and maintaining a stable and efficient monetary and financial framework as its contribution to a healthy economy.
The Bank’s roles and functions have evolved and changed over its three⁃hundred year history.Since its foundation，it has been the Government’s banker and，since the late 18th century，it has been banker to the banking system more generally—the bankers’bank.As well as providing banking services to its customers，the Bank of England manages the UK’s foreign exchange and gold reserves and the Government’s stock register.
The Bank is perhaps most visible to the general public through its banknotes and，more recently，its interest rate decisions.The Bank has had a monopoly on the issue of banknotes in England and Wales since the early 20th century.But it is only since 1997 that the Bank has had statutory responsibility for setting the UK’s official interest rate.
Interest rates decisions are taken by the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee.The MPC has to judge what interest rate is necessary to meet a target for overall inflation in the economy.The inflation target is set each year by the Chancellor of the Exchequer.This is part of the Bank’s objective to“maintain the integrity and value of the currency”—to achieve price stability in the economy.The Bank implements its interest rate decisions through its financial market operations—it sets the interest rate at which the Bank lends to banks and other financial institutions.The Bank has close links with financial markets and institutions.This contact informs a great deal of its work，including collating and publishing monetary and banking statistics.
The Bank is also responsible for maintaining stability in the financial system—a healthy financial system is vital to the proper functioning of the economy.The Bank analyses and promotes initiatives to strengthen the financial system，and monitors financial developments to try to identify potential threats to financial stability.It also undertakes work on the arrangements for handling financial crises should they occur and is the financial system’s“lender of last resort”in exceptional circumstances.In this work，the Bank cooperates closely with Her Majesty’s Treasury and the Financial Services Authority，the regulator of banks and other financial institutions in the UK.
Much of the Bank’s work involves liaison and cooperation with the Government，institutions and other central banks.Given London’s position as a large international financial centre，the Bank’s work addresses international as well as domestic developments.The Bank participates in many international forums involved in promoting the health of the world economy and global financial system.
The Bank also works to ensure that the UK financial system provides effective support to the rest of the UK economy and that the UK remains an attractive location for the conduct of international financial business.