Britain’s banks were slammed on Friday for failing to quickly hike saving rates after the Bank of England increases interest rates.
Harriett Baldwin, chair of the influential Commons Treasury Committee, tore into lenders for swiftly ramping up mortgage rates but being slower to do the same for saving accounts, particularly held by “loyal” customers.
The West Worcestershire MP was scathing in her criticism, the day after the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee’s shock 0.5 percentage point rise in interest rates to five per cent to combat runaway inflation.
Asked on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme if lenders were being sufficiently quick to increase saving rates, Ms Baldwin said: “Absolutely not.
“We have been holding their feet to the fire all year on this.
“We (the Treasury committee) first had them in in March.
“We have all noticed that the day the Bank of England raises rates you get a message from your mortgage lender saying that this has happened and it takes immediate effect on your mortgage if you are on a variable rate.
“But they have been incredibly slow to pass on the increase to their loyal savers, particularly those savers who don’t feel comfortable shopping around and using internet-only banks.”
Lenders deny they are ripping off savers.
But Ms Baldwin added: “I don’t think the high street banks have done nearly enough.
“They have taken it for granted that we have got used to not earning anything on savings and I think my constituents, loyal customers of the high street banks who have some savings in there, are basically being taken advantage of at the moment.”
