Gordon Brown calls on Bank of England to reduce base rates yet further
Gordon Brown has put himself in the rather awkward situation of seemingly trying to dictate the monetary policy of the Bank of England with a call for further UK base rate cuts in a speech in America. This is the first time for many years we have seen a UK prime minister openly call for the Bank of England, which is supposed to be independent from the government of the day, suggesting that base rates need to fall further as soon as possible.
Many economic experts have interpreted this announcement by Gordon Brown as a way to exert more pressure on the Bank of England to come more into line with the UK government's policy of spend and interest-rate reductions. Gordon Brown has put Bank of England in a very difficult position because if they do drop UK interest rates in the short term they could been seen to be following the lead set by Gordon Brown and if they do not they will receive severe criticism from those suffering in the UK.
It will be interesting to see how the Bank of England monetary policy committee react to this call by Gordon Brown.
Share this..
Related stories
Is the UK really headed for a double dip recession?
Towards the end of 2009 it seemed as though the UK economy was on the verge of a sustainable recovery which could potentially save the Labour government from defeat at the next election. However, over the last few weeks the situation has deteriorated somewhat and there are grave fears of a double dip recession in the UK which would effectively undo all of the good work done by Gordon Brown over th...
Read MoreAgency workers to win equal rights after 12 weeks
In a move which has been applauded by UK unions and received a lukewarm welcome from UK business leaders, the government has today launched a consultation paper on agency workers and equal rights. On the back of the European Agency Workers Directive the government is set to put in place legislation which will give agency workers equal rights (to fulltime workers) with regards to holidays and overt...
Read MoreBlack Friday helps retail sales rise
18/12/2014 Black Friday has caused UK retail sales to rise at their fastest annual rate for more than 10 years in November, official figures have shown. Sales rose by 6.4% in November this year compared to last year, the highest annual increase since May 2004. There was growth in all areas for the first time since December 2013, and on a monthly basis they rose 1.6%. The Black Friday di...
Read MoreMarket awaits confirmation that the recession is over
Later this morning the Office for National Statistics will release data that should confirm that the UK economy moved out of recession in the fourth quarter of 2009 and is now back on the growth path. However, even if the UK economy has moved out of recession what does this mean for businesses and consumers across the country? The truth is that there will be a significant lag between the econom...
Read MoreBritish Airways asks 40,000 staff for free hours
In a sign of the times, British Airways has been in contact with its 40,000 work force asking them to work up to one month a year without pay in order to cut the substantial cost base of the group. The company recorded a £400 million loss in 2008 and with the price of oil set to increase and no significant improvement in passenger numbers the next few months could be critical to the future of Bri...
Read More