The Bank of England (BOE) raised interest rates by half a point to 5 per cent last week, with increasing calls for tougher action to fight persistent high inflation. Andrew Bailey, the governor of the Bank of England, said that the Bank thinks inflation - the rate at which prices are rising - will fall "markedly this year" but adds there are signs of it being "persistent".

Earlier this month the Bank of England (BOE) raised interest rates for a 12th consecutive time as the rate of rising prices remains high. The Bank rate has gone up from 4.25% to 4.5%. The BOE has been under pressure to put rates up because it has a target to keep inflation at 2%, but prices are currently rising at more than five times that level. The rate of interest is at its highest for almost 15 years.