Commenting on the decision today (Wednesday) by the Bank of England to raise the Bank Rate to 1%, TUC head of economics Kate Bell said:

“This is the wrong time for a rate rise. The economy is already slowing down and the rise will further harm growth. And it won’t have much impact on supply side problems like rising energy costs.

“The main actions needed are from government, rather than the Bank. We need an emergency budget to help families with the cost of living crisis. And it should include a windfall tax on excess profits from oil and gas, with the revenue used to help households with their bills and energy efficiency.”