DUBLIN, Feb 16 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank still has a way to go to sustainably return inflation to its 2% target and its credibility - and ultimately its independence - is at stake, ECB Governing Council member Gabriel Makhlouf said on Thursday.
"There is a risk that trust and credibility in central banks will take another buffeting from the recent high inflation," Makhlouf, governor of the Irish central bank, said in a lecture at the London School of Economics.
"And, while headline inflation has declined from its end-2022 highs, in part thanks to lower energy prices, I believe we still have a way to go to return inflation sustainably to our 2 per cent target."
In his speech, Makhlouf warned that central bank independence "is not just given, it has to be earned and maintained.
"Trust and credibility, painstakingly built over time, can be destroyed quickly," he said.