Borrowers are crying out for help, but interest rate cuts might not come until November

Struggling homeowners are desperate for a long-anticipated cut in the cost of borrowing. But with a change of government looking likely, the Bank of England might be tempted to wait until as far ahead as late autumn, says James Moore

Sunshine over the Bank of England on Thursday – but more gloom for borrowers (EPA)

Finely balanced” was how the Bank of England’s rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) described its decision to hold interest rates yet again. The election? Absolutely, positively, nothing to do with the decision, it said.

With the Bank in purdah, there were none of the usual commentaries or press conferences to accompany the decision, so there’s even more guesswork than usual in relation to when the much-anticipated rate cut might finally come.

What we do know is that the vote went seven to two in favour of standing still; one of the Bank’s deputy governors, Dave Ramsden, joined interest rate dove-in-chief Swati Dhingra in calling for an immediate cut. The seven others have “a range of views” on what should happen next and how restrictive the Bank’s stance should be.