With Trump threatening trade wars, we’ve heard nothing from the WTO, the custodian of free trade globally. Leaders of international organisations must stand up to be counted. Trump should not be allowed to bully other countries into submission.

@degsy380 Hopefully people are not taken in by this dodgy Twitter/X account. Very hard to stop this kind of thing, but maybe imitation is flattery!

Last week, when the #BoE ramped up its inflation forecast, not one #MPC member voted against a rate cut. Where are the inflation hawks these days? Not on the MPC, clearly!

Inflation Alert! Just received an email from Thames Water. Our water bill will go up by over 40pc in April! The average rise across the UK will be 26pc, adding about 0.1 percent to CPI inflation. Another unhelpful addition to inflation, alongside energy prices, NI + min wage.

Good to see Times Radio doing well - outstripping rivals with jump in listeners. I listen quite a bit, since Radio 4 has gone rapidly downhill!

@John_Stepek The Bank’s problem is that low growth is mainly down to problems on the supply-side of the economy rather than lack of demand. So pumping in more demand will just lead to more inflation.

@andrew_lilico Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones!

@trevgoes4th @bankofengland Energy prices are part of the inflation equation, but looking ahead there are other factors - higher employerNI, wage inflation in the private sector = 6pc, services inflation = 4.4pc, etc. #MPC has set this aside and decided to cut rates despite evidence of its own forecasts!

Fully agreed. Not a good day for the #MPC.

@SkyNews @BethRigby Well done Beth for calling this out. The @bankofengland forecast is dire news for the gov’t. Higher inflation and worse growth. As you pointed out, the autumn Budget has made things worse.

How independent is the @bankofengland these days? With inflation set to rise sharply, the #MPC has cut interest rates which the great British public think is a “good thing”. Governor Andrew Bailey thinks the economy is “disinflating” but his forecast says the opposite!

@bankofengland Governor Andrew Bailey said today he doesn’t like the word “stagflation”. I’m not surprised because that is what we’ve now got - 3 consecutive years of sub-1pc growth with inflation heading up towards 4pc! Not a situation for cutting interest rates.

If I was still on the #MPC, I’d vote to hold interest rates, rather than cut them this month. 4 of us on the Times shadow MPC voted to hold, with only the slimmest 5-4 majority for a cut. Tomorrow’s rate decision could be closer than markets expect.

@andrew_lilico A council of despair, Andrew. You can surely do better than this!

There’s a narrow 5-4 majority on ⁦⁦@thetimes⁩ shadow MPC for an interest rate cut this month. A much tighter vote than expected from the real #MPC tomorrow.4 shadow MPC members (myself included) voted against a rate cut citing inflation concerns.

@DMcWilliams_UK He (Scott Bessent) has defe fed tariffs as a “negotiating tool”. Suggests he doesn’t really believe they are a “good thing” in the way Trump suggests.

@DMcWilliams_UK Agreed, but there must be someone among Trump’s advisers who has a basic understanding of economics!

@Beef13468701 @dsmitheconomics Nothing in Reeves’s speech will deliver major economic benefits in the next 5-10 years. Yes, we need long-term investment projects. But we also need measures which will deliver shorter-term growth benefits and offset damaging tax rises on business.