Bank rate Held at 5.25% – December 2023
The Bank of England has announced its decision to hold the UK interest rates at 5.25% again, keeping them at a 15-year peak.
Six members of the nine-person Monetary Policy Committee – which makes the decision – voted for no change
The other three wanted an increase to 5.5%.
This decision, influenced by a focus on maintaining growth and employment.
The Bank remains vigilant about inflationary pressures and the overall economic resilience, emphasising the need for a sustained restrictive monetary policy to achieve the 2% inflation target in the medium term.
Governor of the Bank of England Andrew Bailey says the country has “come a long way this year” and successive rate increases have “helped bring inflation down” from over 10% in January to 4.6% in October.
But, he stresses there is “still some way to go” in policymakers’ efforts to bring inflation down “all the way back to 2%”.
He says the central bank will “continue to watch the data closely” and “take the decisions necessary” to lower inflation.
