Britain misses out on the gold rush

Gordon Brown notoriously sold British gold for $275 an ounce, costing Britain several billion. But has our subsequent decision not to buy gold also cost us dear? The Tory press office has had fun with gold’s rise, tweeting that it means Brown’s disastrous foray into asset management cost £12 billion. But as John Rentoul asked, a more serious question is now emerging. How much has the current government ‘cost’ Britain by failing to buy gold?

Yesterday it was revealed that European central banks have turned net buyers of gold for the first time in more than 20 years. Good for them, as the yellow metal hit a record $1,920 per ounce this month. Indeed, for many central banks across the world, it’s been gold a-go-go for some time. But strikingly, Britain hasn’t been part of this rush.

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European central banks have added about 0.8