Francis Grimley, a mortgage and protection adviser with the Mortgage Shop in Belfast, said the Bank of England’s cut to the base rate of interest will not solve long-term structural issues with housing supply in Northern Ireland.

The central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted by 5-4 to reduce the base rate of interest to 4% from 4.25% on Thursday.

Interest rates have been gradually decreasing over the past 18 months, as the Bank of England reacts to what it calls “substantial disinflation”, or a reduction in the rate of inflation.

While inflation may be below its 2022 peak, prices are not falling back to pre-pandemic levels, and the rate of inflation is actually set to increase over the coming months.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rate of inflation is now forecast to reach

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