Saver our Savers, the campaign group, claims that Britain's savers are losing out on £44.5bn because of the gulf between inflation and Bank Rate, which continues to languish at 0.5pc. The campaigners said that they calculated the figure using official Bank of England figures.
Simon Rose, spokesman for Save Our Savers said: "It is unfair: to confiscate £44.5 billion annually from savers and pensioners and transfer it to those in debt; to penalise those who have struggled to put something by in order to support those who ran up debts and caused this financial crisis; to reward debt and penalise savings."
The Bank of England also said that the Bank's quantitative easing (QE) programme would remain at £275 billion following the increase of £75 billion in October. The no-change decision came despite a call from the British Chambers of Commerce to increase its support with a £50 billion top-up to QE, following October's shock increase.
But the Bank opted not to move yet as it waits for a clearer picture of how the economy fared in the final quarter of 2011 following mixed recent data.
Fears intensified that the economy might have slipped into reverse in the fourth quarter of 2011, after Office for National Statistics figures revealed industrial production declined by 0.6pc in November, following a 1pc fall in October. Manufacturing output fell 0.2pc in November although its decline was at a lower rate than the previous month.
There have also been recent signs that the economy improved slightly in December, with industry surveys coming in stronger than expected. Growth in the powerhouse services sector, which makes up 75pc of the UK economy, is likely to have saved the wider economy from contraction in the final quarter, while surveys reported growth in manufacturing and construction.
But the crisis in the eurozone – which the Bank cited as one of the key threats to UK recovery – continues to rumble on as EU leaders are yet to deliver a concrete plan to resolve the region's problems. Economists still expect a further £50 billion of QE from the Bank of England in both the first and second quarters of this year, taking the total up to £375 billion.
Source: Savers lose out on £44.5bn as Bank Rate stays at 0.5pc - Telegraph
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What's £44.5 bln?
That's 50% more than High Speed 2 will cost over 20 years building it up to Manchester and Leeds.
That's equivalent to around 10% in rate of VAT (ie it would need to go to 30% to steal same amount of money).
Simon Rose, spokesman for Save Our Savers said: "It is unfair: to confiscate £44.5 billion annually from savers and pensioners and transfer it to those in debt; to penalise those who have struggled to put something by in order to support those who ran up debts and caused this financial crisis; to reward debt and penalise savings."
The Bank of England also said that the Bank's quantitative easing (QE) programme would remain at £275 billion following the increase of £75 billion in October. The no-change decision came despite a call from the British Chambers of Commerce to increase its support with a £50 billion top-up to QE, following October's shock increase.
But the Bank opted not to move yet as it waits for a clearer picture of how the economy fared in the final quarter of 2011 following mixed recent data.
Fears intensified that the economy might have slipped into reverse in the fourth quarter of 2011, after Office for National Statistics figures revealed industrial production declined by 0.6pc in November, following a 1pc fall in October. Manufacturing output fell 0.2pc in November although its decline was at a lower rate than the previous month.
There have also been recent signs that the economy improved slightly in December, with industry surveys coming in stronger than expected. Growth in the powerhouse services sector, which makes up 75pc of the UK economy, is likely to have saved the wider economy from contraction in the final quarter, while surveys reported growth in manufacturing and construction.
But the crisis in the eurozone – which the Bank cited as one of the key threats to UK recovery – continues to rumble on as EU leaders are yet to deliver a concrete plan to resolve the region's problems. Economists still expect a further £50 billion of QE from the Bank of England in both the first and second quarters of this year, taking the total up to £375 billion.
Source: Savers lose out on £44.5bn as Bank Rate stays at 0.5pc - Telegraph
---
What's £44.5 bln?
That's 50% more than High Speed 2 will cost over 20 years building it up to Manchester and Leeds.
That's equivalent to around 10% in rate of VAT (ie it would need to go to 30% to steal same amount of money).
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