Chronic low bank savings interest rates plus 'quantitative easing' have unfairly victimized savers and recent retirees say UK MP's

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4/17/12, "Millions 'should be compensated for their shattered retirement dreams', say MPs," ThisIsMoney.co.uk, B. Barrow

"Millions of thrifty pensioners who have had their retirement plans shattered by the Bank of England should be given compensation, MPs say today.

A damning report lays bare the crippling impact on the recently retired and savers of the Bank’s decision to pump £325billion into the economy.

Since so-called quantitative easing began three years ago, campaigners have highlighted how older people have become the sacrificial lambs of the Bank’s emergency rescue policy. The aim of QE has been to keep interest rates low to boost economic growth, prevent a wave of mortgage repossessions and pump money into the flagging economy.

But today the Treasury select committee makes it clear that an urgent lifeline must be thrown to those hurt by QE.

It also highlights the plight of savers since the Bank cut the base rate to a historic low of 0.5 per cent in 2009, describing the combination of low interest rates and QE as ‘extremely lax monetary policy’.

The report says: ‘We recommend that the Government consider whether there are any measures that should be taken to mitigate the redistributional effects of QE.’...

MPs also want the Bank to publish its estimate of ‘the overall benefit and loss to pensioners and savers’ from QE.

For the first time, this would put an official – and explosive – figure on just how much money the Bank’s emergency policy has cost millions of Britons."...

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