Tinker, tailor, soldier... and a central banker The trouble was that Mr Carney had formally ruled himself out as a candidate, even though Mr Osborne wanted him. Unless discretion was guaranteed, neither he nor some of the other candidates would have applied. They - and Mr Osborne - would have been deeply embarrassed had there been a running commentary in the media. There were also concerns about Mr Carney being a foreign national. Publicity could have made this much more of an issue. Says one insider: "Imagine the rumpus if Mervyn applied to be head of the Fed!" The possibility of Sir Mervyn King, outgoing governor of the Bank of England, applying to run the Federal Reserve, America's central bank, would do more than raise eyebrows. I understand that another "very strong" candidate to succeed Sir Mervyn was, like Mr Carney, a foreigner. Mr Carney is to be the best-paid central banker in the world, with a package worth some £874,000. Had he been negotiating in public he might have secured an even better deal. In its attempt to keep the appointment secret, there have been claims that the Treasury encouraged people to think that the winning candidate would be deputy governor Paul Tucker, who was only told he had not been given the job at the last minute. As it was, everyone in the know played along. Apparently the Canadians knew that their man was going to London five days before the announcement was made but didn't tell anyone. Yet even with all the precautions, there were some nasty moments in the safe house. Once it was necessary to interview two candidates on the same day. Arrangements were made to keep them apart, but there was consternation when one asked to go to the gents, in case he met his rival. He didn't. Mr Carney is due to appear before MPs on the Treasury select committee on February 7. Andrew Tyrie, the Tory chairman of the committee, told me yesterday that, because of the new responsibilities of the Bank of England, its new governor would have unprecedented influence "at the heart of British economic and financial policy." He added that the committee would quiz him in detail on how he intended to exercise this. Given Mr Osborne's promises about an open and transparent selection process, there's a sporting chance the MPs will also want to ask him about his covert interviews. Of course, the Treasury has a history of keeping its secrets secret. "Before the pound was floated and we were always about £50 million away from disaster, secrecy was vital," says one old hand. "Draft copies of the Budget had 'BUDGET-SECRET" printed across every page and they threatened to string you up if you divulged anything." It seems Whitehall hasn't entirely lost its talent for secrecy - at least not at the Treasury. No 10 is a different matter: this week one of David Cameron's senior advisers was photographed with a document discussing the pros and cons of releasing a list of the Coalition's failures and successes. The result? Widespread publicity for 70 missed pledges. Mr Cameron should ask Mr Osborne for some secret advice. With Europe looming large on the Whitehall/Westminster agenda in 2013, our diplomats are doing their best to keep the French on side. One of the grandest bits of the Foreign Office building is the Entente Cordiale room. It is just off Durbar Court and used to be known as the Durbar Room but was renamed following the centenary of the 1904 agreements. To the right of the elegant fireplace is an enormous painting of Napoleon. I'm told the French ambassador was most gratified to see it - and not just for the obvious reason. He was heard to remark that now, at least, there was one room in the Foreign Office where he was not looked down upon by Nelson or Wellington.