Chancellor responds to Bank of England interest rates decision

The Chancellor has responded to the Bank of England's interest rates decision.

Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt said:  

“We are starting to see the tide turn against high inflation, but we will continue to do what we can to help households struggling with mortgage payments.

“Now is the time to see the job through. We are on track to halve inflation this year and sticking to our plan is the only way to bring interest and mortgage rates down.” 

Notes to editors

• We are tacking inflation through: 

• Our steadfast support for the independent Monetary Policy Committee at the Bank of England as it takes action to return inflation to the 2% target. 

• Taking difficult, but responsible fiscal decisions to not add fuel to the fire. 
• Supply-side measures including a package to boost labour supply, providing a boost to growth without irresponsibly fueling inflation. 
• Ministers keeping in close discussion with food producers and supermarkets about the cost of food and following live Competition and Markets Authority reviews of the groceries sector. 
• And our Mortgage Charter, covering 90% of the mortgage market, is helping people get through this difficult time by giving extra protections against repossessions and making it easier to manage monthly repayments. 
• When this was launched in July, we signed 7 banks up. We now have 47 – showing how determined we are to help people on the sharp end of rising interest rates.