IEA Shadow Monetary Policy Committee Chair Trevor Williams has been quoted in The Daily Express responding to the Bank’s decision to raise interest rates to 4.5 per cent.

The article said:

“The Institute of Economic Affairs said today’s hike would be a mistake due to ‘the UK’s fragile economy, easing supply chain pressures and recent bank failures’.

“The IEA warned that higher interest rates and monetary tightening, particularly in the US, drove the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. 

“The IEA’s Trevor Williams, a former chief economist at Lloyds Bank, said a further interest rate rise is unnecessary as the MPC’s own official forecast indicates that inflation will significantly undershoot its two percent target in two years.

“It could also do serious damage to the UK’s economy, Williams added. ‘The Bank of England allowed inflation to get out of control by being too slow to raise interest rates. It is now making the opposite mistake.'”

Read the full article here.

Trevor’s comment was also featured in City AM (Page 1 – 11/05/2023).