Bank of England policymaker warns of 'pandemic hangovers', as private sector shrinks – as it happened
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, as the UK Treasury Committee questions the Bank of England
Earlier:
- US private sector growth hits five-year high
- Analyst: World should ‘jump for joy’ over AstraZeneca vaccine
- UK PMI shows economy shrinking this month
- Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine offers up to 90{998ff540fe94a59c7c9828c4dd5223100610db67cea90947d11644c77e05f5f4} efficacy
7.04pm GMT
Time to wrap up.
Obviously it’s better to have a vaccine than not, but those are hangovers from the pandemic even as and when there is an effective vaccine, which I suspect will weigh on the economy for some time.
Speaking personally, it felt like the first time in eight or nine months that there is some lights coming at the end of the tunnel.
I have to say I think it’s terrific news, and I take my hat off to all the people involved in doing this work on these vaccines.
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6.28pm GMT
Speaking of the furlough scheme….chancellor Rishi Sunak has been criticised by the Treasury committee for not helping thousands of small businesses in England on the brink of collapse.
These firms, the MPs warn, would have benefited from financial help in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, but are falling through the gaps in Sunak’s plans.
Related: MPs accuse Rishi Sunak of snubbing calls to fix furlough scheme gaps