MPC voted unanimously for base rate reduction

The Bank of England’s monetary policy committee (MPC) voted unanimously to reduce the base rate of interest for the UK at its most recent meeting, it has been revealed.

According to the minutes of the MPC’s February meeting, eight members of the committee voted in favour of cutting interest rates by a quarter-point, while one wanted to see them trimmed by half a percentage.

Many homeowners and consumers with debt management problems had been hoping that the bank would reduce the base rate because the effect might help them to meet their repayment demands over the coming months.

As part of its assessment of the economic condition of the UK as a whole, the MPC noted that the number of people being approved for mortgage loans in recent weeks has reached unusually low levels that have not been seen since 1995.

Despite the “dampening” of the housing market, the Council of Mortgage Lenders recently revealed that affordability worsened for first-time property buyers around the country during 2007.