Nigel Farage has blamed the Bank of England for Britain slipping into recession.
The former Ukip leader pointed to the interest rate policy of the UK’s central bank.
He also branded Andrew Bailey the “worst governor of the Bank of England in our history”.
Speaking on his GB News show, Mr Farage said: “I point the finger of blame personally far more at the Bank of England than I do at the Government.
“I think we have the worst governor of the Bank of England in our history.
“They were far too slow to put interest rates up when inflation was clearly coming down the track. And now we’re going the other way they are far too slow to reduce interest rates.
“I think that interest rate message actually is for me a very important driver of why we are now in recession.”
Mr Farage’s comments come after official figures released today showed the UK’s economy went into recession at the end of 2023.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimated that gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, following a decline of 0.1% in the previous three months.
It means that the economy entered a technical recession, as defined by two or more quarters in a row of falling GDP.
The figures are a blow to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who promised to grow the economy as one of his five priorities.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said: “While interest rates are high – so the Bank of England can bring inflation down – low growth is not a surprise.
“But there are signs the British economy is turning a corner; forecasters agree that growth will strengthen over the next few years, wages are rising faster than prices, mortgage rates are down and unemployment remains low.
“Although times are still tough for many families, we must stick to the plan – cutting taxes on work and business to build a stronger economy.”
But shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said Mr Sunak’s pledge to grow the economy was “in tatters”.
She said: “The Prime Minister can no longer credibly claim that his plan is working or that he has turned the corner on more than 14 years of economic decline under the Conservatives that has left Britain worse off.
“This is Rishi Sunak’s recession and the news will be deeply worrying for families and business across Britain.”
