Bank of England supplies extra £150 billion for economy

The Bank of England is set to pump an extra £150 billion into the economy in order to keep the country propped up during the pandemic.

On the same day England entered a second lockdown (November 5), the bank confirmed its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) had voted to maintain interest rates at 0.1% but expand quantitative easing (QE) – buying government bonds.

Representatives stated that the £150bn influx reflected new forecasts – which show that the economy is set to remain ‘below its pre-pandemic peak’ in 2022. 

The MPC has warned the outlook for Britain “remains unusually uncertain” looking ahead – owing both to the pandemic and the inevitable effects of Brexit. 

Britain officially entered a recession during lockdown, and despite a small recovery in later months, GDP growth has since slowed considerably. 

According to the BBC, policymakers expect the economy to shrink 11% overall in 2020.

Unemployment may peak at 7.75% in 2021 – which would be its highest rate for eight years.