The Bank of England stood accused today of paying bonuses to its own staff at a time when it was calling for pay restraint from everyone else as part of its own faltering fight against inflation.
A total of £25 million pounds was paid out last year in staff bonuses, with some employees getting up to £22,500 in addition to their base salaries. Just under 430 people received performance awards of over £10,000 each.
Governor Andrew Bailey – who led the pay restraint calls, for fear of a wage-prices spiral making inflation more stubborn – is paid just under £500,000 a year. Average annual pay at the BOE is over £62,000, while Bailey’s deputies are paid between £348,000 and £378,000.
The figures were compiled by the OpenDemocracy website. The Standard put them to the Bank of England, which did not dispute any of the figures.
💰 Bankers were each awarded up to £22,500 on top of their regular salaries, despite its chief economist Huw Pill telling Brits to “accept” being poorer ⤵️#BankofEngland #costoflivingcrisishttps://t.co/0Uo8svmVvI pic.twitter.com/lswJj2Ez6q
— openDemocracy (@openDemocracy) July 17, 2023
The BOE said: “For this year, the Bank has given a 3.5% pay award to its staff. There is no question of the Bank unduly rewarding its staff.”
The numbers on bonuses were published as the BOE faces a wave of public and political criticism over its handling of the fight against inflation. It has hiked rates 13 times in a row, taking the cost of borrowing in the UK to 5%, its highest since the financial crisis. A fourteenth rise is expected next month.
For this year, the Bank has given a 3.5% pay award to its staff. There is no question of the Bank unduly rewarding its staff
The campaign to tame inflation means mortgage holders face steep rises in repayments, estimated at a typical £200 a month by the end of this year.
And inflation is sticking for longer at elevated levels in the UK, where tomorrow’s reading of the Consumer Price Index is set to stay above 8%. Its equivalent in the US fell to 3% last week. The BOE’s target for inflation, set by the government, is 2%.
