LONDON (Reuters) -British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak supports Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey and the government continues to work closely with the central bank in an effort to combat inflation, a spokesperson for the prime minister said on Thursday.
Bailey has been criticised by some politicians in the governing Conservative Party for downplaying the risks of inflation over the last two years, describing it as “transient” in 2021.
The Bank of England raised interest rates by a bigger-than-expected half a percentage point on Thursday after it said there had been “significant” news suggesting British inflation would take longer to fall.
Asked whether Bailey had been doing a good job, Sunak’s spokesperson said: “He continues to have the prime minister’s support.”
“We’re working incredibly closely with the Bank of England, and he continues to support the work they do. And we as government continue to work closely with them on the shared priority to reduce inflation.”
Mark Harper, the transport secretary, on Wednesday evening went further than other members of the cabinet when he said that the government had seen the danger of high inflation before the central bank.
“Sunak made it clear when he was chancellor that he saw inflation as a problem and he saw that early on,” he said.
Jake Berry, a former cabinet minister and a member of parliament, told LBC radio: “My own personal view is that the Bank of England has been asleep at the wheel.”
(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill, writing by Alistair Smout, Editing by Kylie MacLellan)
