Bank of England mpc: Who sets uk interest rates?
The
Bank of England's monetary policy committee has nine members
The Bank of England's decision makers voted six to three in favour of keeping rates on hold at a record low of 0.5% this month. It is the third month in a row that three members have voted for a rise.
The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee, which meets every month to set UK interest rates, is made up of nine members: the governor, two deputy governors, the Bank's chief economist, the executive director for markets and four external members appointed directly by the chancellor.
Each member, serving fixed terms, votes to set interest rates at the level they believe is consistent with meeting the inflation target - currently 2%. The committee's decision is made on the basis of one person, one vote.
They are generally described as either hawks or doves: hawks tend to favour higher interest rates to control inflation, while doves typically prefer keeping rates low to try to encourage economic growth.
Bank of England's monetary policy committee |
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Member |
Position/term |
Background |
Voting record |
Hawk or dove? |
Source: Bank of England, Stephanie Flanders, BBC News Business |
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Mervyn King |
Governor 1 July 2008 - 30 June 2013 (second term) |
A former deputy governor, Mr King has held the top job since 2008. Previously, he was professor of economics at the London School of Economics (LSE) |
Dec: No change Jan: No change Feb: No change Mar: No change Apr: No change |
Dove |
Charles Bean |
Deputy governor, monetary policy 1 July 2008 - 30 June 2013 |
A former executive director and chief economist, Mr Bean became deputy governor in 2008. Before joining the Bank he spent time at the Treasury and was an LSE professor |
Dec: No change Jan: No change Feb: No change Mar: No change Apr: No change |
Swing voter - more dove than hawk |
Paul Tucker |
Deputy governor, financial stability 1 March 2009 - 28 February 2014 |
A former merchant banker, Mr Tucker has been at the Bank for decades, working his way up the ranks. He became deputy governor in 2009 |
Dec: No change Jan: No change Feb: No change Mar: No change Apr: No change |
Swing voter - more hawk than dove |
Spencer Dale |
Executive director and chief economist 1 July 2008 - 31 May 2013 |
After about 20 years at the Bank, Mr Dale was made executive director in 2008. He has also spent time at the US central bank, the Federal Reserve |
Dec: No change Jan: No change Feb: Raise to 0.75% Mar: Raise to 0.75% Apr: Raise to 0.75% |
Hawk |
Paul Fisher |
Executive director 1 March 2009 - 31 May 2011 |
Mr Fisher joined the Bank in 1990, having previously worked at the University of Warwick where he specialised in macroeconomics. He became a director in 2009 |
Dec: No change Jan: No change Feb: No change Mar: No change Apr: No change |
Neither Hawk nor dove - sits in the middle |
David Miles |
External member 1 June 2009 - 31 May 2012 |
A former specialist economic advisor to the Treasury Select Committee, Mr Miles joined the Bank's committee in 2009. He is a visiting professor at Imperial College |
Dec: No change Jan: No change Feb: No change Mar: No change Apr: No change |
Dove |
Adam Posen |
External member 1 September 2009 - 31 August 2012 |
Mr Posen is a former visiting scholar at the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank. He is also a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics |
Dec: No change Jan: No change Feb: No change Mar: No change Apr: No change (consistently voted for a £50bn increase in quantitative easing) |
Arch dove |
Andrew Sentance |
External member 1 June 2008 - 31 May 2011 (second term) |
A former chief economist at British Airways, Mr Sentance was appointed to the committee by the chancellor. He is also a professor at Warwick University |
Dec: Raise to 0.75% Jan: Raise to 0.75% Feb: Raise to 1% Mar: Raise to 1% Apr: Raise to 1% |
Arch hawk |
Martin Weale |
External member 1 August 2010 - 31 July 2013 |
Mr Weale spent 15 years as director of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research. He was also a lecturer at Cambridge. He joined the committee in 2010 |
Dec: No change Jan: Raise to 0.75% Feb: Raise to 0.75% Mar: Raise to 0.75% Apr: Raise to 0.75% |
Hawk |
