When panellists were asked if the bank should lower rates to encourage growth and borrowing, six of the panellists said this would be their ideal approach.

David Hollingsworth, an associate director at L&C Mortgages, shared this train of thought and determined that “reaching the peak of rate rises sooner rather than later should help borrowers adjust to the new rate environment and how it impacts them”.

Jon Ostler, the CEO at finder.com, added: “With a weak economy and employment market there is a real danger of overdoing monetary tightening and we could end up in between a rock and a hard place”.

However, four of the panellists believe the opposite and consider a more hawkish approach as necessary due to the circumstances.