Media focus on interest rate cuts lets the government off the hook. The real decisions shaping who suffers and who thrives come from political choices, not central bank tweaks.
The Bank of England is set to cut interest rates from 4.5 per cent to 4.25 per cent today (May 8, 2025), in a move that has made headlines.
We are told this will make mortgages cheaper, borrowing easier, and — maybe — help steady the economy in turbulent global times.
But here’s the blunt truth:
This is a distraction.
A quarter-point rate cut will knock £29 off the average tracker mortgage.
It will trim a little off loan rates and shave a little off savings returns. But it will do nothing to address the real, grinding economic pressures hitting millions of households across Britain.
Why?
Because the Bank of England can only pull one big lever: the base interest rate.
It has no power over wages, rents, energy bills, food prices, housing supply, or the social security safety net.
Those are political decisions. And they are being made — or more often, avoided — by the government in Downing Street and Whitehall.
Who really shapes the economy?
It’s a neat political trick, isn’t it?
The media keeps the public focused on the drama of monetary policy: the technical manoeuvres of economists in suits at Threadneedle Street, and meanwhile, the people with the actual power to decide who benefits and who struggles — the Prime Minister, the Chancellor, Parliament — skate by without serious scrutiny.
While the Bank fiddles with interest rates, here are just some of the things the government controls and neglects:
-
Raising the minimum wage or public sector pay
-
Reforming universal credit, benefits, and pensions
-
Tackling out-of-control housing costs with rent controls or social housing
-
Regulating energy firms to protect consumers
-
Investing in public services that reduce the cost burden on families
None of these problems can be fixed with a minor interest rate change. But they could be fixed with political will.
The kicker: a government hiding behind the Bank
Let’s be clear: the Bank of England has an important job, but it is not an elected body. It does not set the moral direction of the economy.
That is the government’s job.
So next time you hear politicians or pundits tell you that everything depends on the Bank’s next move, ask yourself: who’s dodging responsibility here?
While Downing Street hides behind Threadneedle Street, the people paying the price are workers, renters, pensioners, and families — the vast majority of Britain — left waiting for political leadership that never comes.
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Stop blaming the Bank of England — It’s Downing Street that’s failing strivers
Media focus on interest rate cuts lets the government off the hook. The real decisions shaping who suffers and who thrives come from political choices, not central bank tweaks.
The Bank of England is set to cut interest rates from 4.5 per cent to 4.25 per cent today (May 8, 2025), in a move that has made headlines.
We are told this will make mortgages cheaper, borrowing easier, and — maybe — help steady the economy in turbulent global times.
But here’s the blunt truth:
This is a distraction.
A quarter-point rate cut will knock £29 off the average tracker mortgage.
It will trim a little off loan rates and shave a little off savings returns. But it will do nothing to address the real, grinding economic pressures hitting millions of households across Britain.
Why?
Because the Bank of England can only pull one big lever: the base interest rate.
It has no power over wages, rents, energy bills, food prices, housing supply, or the social security safety net.
Those are political decisions. And they are being made — or more often, avoided — by the government in Downing Street and Whitehall.
Who really shapes the economy?
It’s a neat political trick, isn’t it?
The media keeps the public focused on the drama of monetary policy: the technical manoeuvres of economists in suits at Threadneedle Street, and meanwhile, the people with the actual power to decide who benefits and who struggles — the Prime Minister, the Chancellor, Parliament — skate by without serious scrutiny.
While the Bank fiddles with interest rates, here are just some of the things the government controls and neglects:
Raising the minimum wage or public sector pay
Reforming universal credit, benefits, and pensions
Tackling out-of-control housing costs with rent controls or social housing
Regulating energy firms to protect consumers
Investing in public services that reduce the cost burden on families
None of these problems can be fixed with a minor interest rate change. But they could be fixed with political will.
The kicker: a government hiding behind the Bank
Let’s be clear: the Bank of England has an important job, but it is not an elected body. It does not set the moral direction of the economy.
That is the government’s job.
So next time you hear politicians or pundits tell you that everything depends on the Bank’s next move, ask yourself: who’s dodging responsibility here?
While Downing Street hides behind Threadneedle Street, the people paying the price are workers, renters, pensioners, and families — the vast majority of Britain — left waiting for political leadership that never comes.
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