If the Chancellor was still on a high from last week’s big growth-focused speech, the Bank of England has just pulled her back down to earth and, for good measure, poured a bucket of cold water over her.

This is a time for hard truths and none harder than the hammer-blow fact that the Bank of England has slashed its economic growth forecast in half.

Having previously thought that the UK economy would grow 1.5 per cent this year the Governor Andrew Bailey broke the news yesterday that they now anticipate a rate of just 0.75 per cent – barely noticeable.

Yes, the Bank cut interest rates which is good news for some mortgage borrowers and borrowers but they did it precisely because the economy is in the emergency room; inflation could reach 3.7 per cent towards the end of this year, unemployment is rising and in the restrained words of the Bank of England – business and consumer confidence has declined – since last October’s Budget.

In the run up to the Budget City AM warned that the government’s miserable doom and gloom tone would spook businesses........

© City A.M.