“Successive increases in inflation, led by an ongoing surge in average earnings and a spike in energy prices, have clearly soured the appetite of policymakers to commit to a path of further reduction just yet.

“Instead, they will want to see a significant cooling in wage pressures before they’re satisfied that inflation is under control. That task may prove difficult, especially in the services sector, where inflation remains its most sticky, yet competition for talented people is more acute, thus driving up wage demands.

In turn, this creates challenges for businesses across the economy, who simply want some reassurance before they invest, recruit and grow.

Uncertainty can become contagious, and it’s certainly not helpful for a government that is banking on growth, so we must hope the Committee has greater scope for rate cuts in the coming months.”

“All we want as a company is simply to have more certainty and stability for the year ahead, which means keeping rising costs under control.

“Inflation is arguably the biggest enemy to business confidence, and the recent rise is a concern, so it feels like the correct decision to hold interest rates at the moment just to make sure it does not accelerate any further.”