Comments from Nick Hopkinson, Director of property company, PPR Estates, on today�s Bank of England MPC Minutes for November

23 November 2011

�Reading this month�s minutes, it�s worryingly clear that the Bank of England Governor and his key advisors have no more ideas about how to get UK PLC growing than anyone else. The way forward is shrouded in a fog of �Euro-uncertainty� every bit as thick as that closing in over Heathrow earlier this week. The ongoing Middle East/African political troubles and unfathomably large US public debt impasse only add to the current uncertainty. Perhaps more worrying is that the Bank appears to have no fiscal ammunition left in its armoury with interest rates stuck at near zero for the foreseeable future, inflation above 5% and showing no signs of falling, and the latest batch of Quantitative Easing (QE) completely failing to ease credit in any meaningful way for struggling small to medium firms or individuals. �Threats of further inflationary QE in the New Year will put even more pressure on tens of thousands of UK families who are already seeing their budgets squeezed as costs increase rapidly ahead of their disposable incomes. Even estate agents are now belatedly advising potential home sellers to drop their asking prices this month according to their latest surveys; a move that will be too little too late for many unfortunate households who wanted to clear their debts this year. UK house prices are falling by at least 5% annually in real terms at the moment, outside of London�s millionaire enclaves, and things may rapidly get a lot worse if events outside our control deteriorate even further.� If you would like to speak to Nick, you can contact him on 07768 144497.