The MPC voted 8-1 in favour of reducing its policy interest rate from 5% to 4.75% at its meeting on 7 November. This represented a large swing from the 8-1 vote to keep rates unchanged at the September MPC meeting.
The Monetary Policy Report released at the conclusion of the November meeting showed that inflation in the UK has been lower than the Bank expected in August (see Chart 1). However, inflation is still projected to rise in the coming months due to base effects for energy prices and is now expected to decline at a slower pace than previously anticipated.1 In part, this reflects the forecast impact of the UK’s Autumn budget.2