Early gift for borrowers with cuts to base rate

The Bank of England will vote next week on whether to lower interest rates and, here, GRAHAM HISCOTT explains how it could affect you

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BoE Governor Andrew Bailey

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey could give millions of borrowers an early Christmas present next week by backing a rate cut. The Bank's nine-member Monetary Policy Committee vote comes on December 18 and all the signs are they'll opt for a drop.

Its base rate has stood at 4% since it was last cut in August, but experts reckon a reduction to 3.75% is all but certain, despite inflation remaining stubbornly higher than the Bank wants.

The MPC is instead likely to focus on a slowdown in wage growth.

A rate cut next week will benefit borrowers with variable rate mortgages. That applies to those on lenders' standard variable rate (SVR) - assuming it is passed on - or a discounted or tracker deal.