Cable: Bank of England needs new mandate including growth and employment

Vince Cable has called for the Bank of England to be given a new mandate allowing it to promote growth and employment. It comes as Mark Carney hinted that the Bank of England will raise interest rates in the coming months, a move the Liberal Democrat Leader warned would risk depriving the UK economy of its "only source of life support." Official figures yesterday showed the UK economy grew at its slowest annual pace since 2013 in the three months to June. Liberal Democrat Leader Vince Cable commented: “These downgraded growth figures are yet another sign of the slowdown our economy is experiencing, as Brexit negotiations hit a brick wall and business confidence falters. “While Mark Carney is right to be worried about unsustainable credit growth, raising interest rates any time soon risks depriving our struggling economy of its only source of life support. “The Liberal Democrats were the first to call for independence for the Bank of England twenty years ago, and we will continue to defend its autonomy from political attacks. "But in this exceptional environment of low growth and low interest rates, the Bank needs a new mandate that empowers it to target growth and employment as well as low inflation.”