Australia's Stevens on new communication policy

Stevens told the Sydney Institute: "While we will rarely be found courting publicity, neither will we shirk the responsibility to explain what we are doing and why. That is a requirement of good governance, but also it will usually make policy decisions more effective."

"This material will not compete too well with the best seller lists, and almost everyone will (I hope) have better things to read while on the beach over the summer than the Reserve Bank Board's minutes," Stevens added. "But for the professionals, this will hopefully make a modest further contribution to their understanding of the Board's decisions. And for any of the rest of you who are having trouble getting to sleep ..."

The governor, however, noted that there were limits to transparency: "More is not always better, and because the decision to disclose additional information is hard to reverse once made, it should be made with care."

Stevens said he was very pleased to learn when he met the new Treasurer a couple of weeks ago that he supported the changes.

To read the speech, click here