George Osborne's ambitions over IMF top job prompt criticism

Former UK chancellor's austerity agenda will count against him, say opponents

George Osborne's interest in running the International Monetary Fund has met immediate criticism because of the former chancellor's austerity policies and Brexit-related question marks over the UK's international standing.

Osborne, the editor of the Evening Standard, has signalled to friends that he views himself as a potential candidate to replace Christine Lagarde, the current head of the Washington-based fund, who was nominated to lead the European Central Bank this week.

Christine Lagarde's nomination to run the European Central Bank has prompted speculation over who could replace her as managing director of the International Monetary Fund.

Hey, why not? If Trump is nominating people who got everything wrong about monetary policy for the Fed, why not someone who insisted that austerity is expansionary for the IMF? https://t.co/VlBZeCYGRJ

It is difficult to imagine that in these pre-Brexit day, any UK candidate would enjoy the support of the EU. The temptation to show the benefits EU members have is too strong. - Osborne eyes chance of replacing Lagarde as head of IMF via @FT
https://t.co/PSWn4VgWfm