Welcome news for homeowners as Bank of England holds interest rates
The Bank of England has finally halted the seemingly inexorable rise in interest rates and voted to maintain the figure at 5.25%
The Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee voted by 5 to 4 to maintain the rate – putting an end to 14 consecutive rises.
Four members preferred to increase Bank Rate by 0.25 percentage points, to 5.5%.
The move comes after a surprise fall in inflation to 6.7% for the 12 months to August, which was announced yesterday and had prompted hopes in the business community of a halt to the creeping interest rate rises.
Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey, said: “Inflation has fallen a lot in recent months, and we think it will continue to do so. That’s welcome news.
“But there is no room for complacency. We need to be sure inflation returns to normal and we will continue to take the decisions necessary to do just that.”
“We are starting to see the tide turn against high inflation, but we will continue to do what we can to help households struggling with mortgage payments,” said Chancellor Jeremy Hunt.
“Now is the time to see the job through. We are on track to halve inflation this year and sticking to our plan is the only way to bring interest and mortgage rates down.”
