The decision to increase the rate by 0.25% comes as the Bank of England tries to ease rising inflation which has caused prices to increase at the fastest rate in 30 years.

The bank’s monetary policy committee (MPC) of nine members voted on the issue with eight in favour and one, deputy governor Jon Cunliffe, voting against. This is the third consecutive increase in the base rate since December and has returned interest rates to their pre-Covid level.

The minutes of the meeting show that the Bank wanted to ‘tighten monetary policy’ to prevent inflationary expectations becoming ‘embedded’, citing rising prices and minimal wage growth before inflation.

It also stated that the effect of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would also ‘likely accentuate both the peak in inflation and the adverse impact on activity by intensifying the squeeze on household incomes’. It also stressed that this was ‘likely to slow’ down UK economic growth.

The min