Bank of England Holds Interest Rates at 0.5 Percent

Level has remained the same since March 2009

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has again voted to keep interest rates on hold at 0.5%.

It has kept the key borrowing rate at that level since March 2009.

The MPC also said it would make no change to the £375bn of monetary stimulus it is providing through its quantitative easing (QE) programme.

Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said that before interest rates can rise, the unemployment rate needs to fall below 7%.

That stipulation is part of Mr Carney's policy of giving forward guidance.