Took welcomes Governor’s ‘Forward Guidance’ for Woking and the UK’s Recovery

Chris Took, the Lib Dem Parliamentary candidate for Woking, has welcomed comments by Bank of England Governor Mark Carney that interest rates will not return to pre-crisis levels of 5% until "all spare capacity was being used in the economy."

Chris, a company Director of a technology business, has said that Carney's comments, known as 'Forward Guidance,' will help both businesses and consumers when it comes to making purchasing decisions.

"Whilst not the case for all, it is accepted that many businesses do have a decent cash position but they are wary of investing in infrastructure or recruiting more employees as the economic recovery is not yet fully established."

"The guidance from the Bank of England Governor will allow many companies, including my own, to make purchasing and employment decisions knowing that interest rates are not likely to surge anytime soon."

Under previous guidance issued by the Bank of England a rate rise was expected when unemployment fell below 7%. Initially the Bank of England did not anticipate this happening until 2016 but a fall in unemployment to 7.1% in January 2014 has led to a rethink. The jobless rate is now forecast to fall to 6.9pc by March, and 6.3pc by the end of 2014. Figures in Woking are massively ahead of National Trends, with a 4.1% unemployment rate reported in October 2013 (the latest available regional figures).

"A business led recovery is the only way that we can rebalance our economy away from just service sector growth - we are starting to see continued growth but in order for it to be sustained we need business investment. Mark Carney's comments make that prospect much more likely."