For the 16th consecutive month, The Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) have voted to keep UK interest rates on hold at 0.5%. Although this was widely expected there have been growing calls for the base rate to be increased in an effort to curb inflation.
Last month MPC member Andrew Sentance voted to increase the rate by 0.25%, becoming the first committee member to vote for an increase since August 2008. Mr Sentance is of the opinion that the rate needs to be raised in order to bring down inflation which remains stubbornly high. In April the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) reached 3.7%, the highest it had been for 17 months and well above the government’s 2% target. Although this has fallen back a little, the rate still stands at 3.4%.
In 2 weeks time the minutes of this month’s meeting will be released. It will be interesting to see the voting figures. General consensus is that the current historically low rate level will remain for the remainder of this year at least.
The members of the MPC have to manage a balancing act that is as tricky as it has been in a long while. Even when change does come it will most probably be in the form of small 0.25% increases, so for the short term at least interest rates will remain low.
