Bank of England (BoE) chief economist Huw Pill said on Friday he thought the time for a first interest rate cut by the central bank since the coronavirus pandemic remained "some way off."
"In my baseline scenario the time for cutting Bank Rate remains some way off," said in a speech to Cardiff University Business School.
"I need to see more compelling evidence that the underlying persistent component of UK CPI inflation is being squeezed down to rates consistent with a lasting and sustainable achievement of the 2% inflation target before voting to lower Bank Rate."
Pill was among the majority of members of the BoE's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) who voted at the central bank's last meeting to keep interest rates at a 16-year high of 5.25%.
His comments on Friday echoed those he made on Feb. 16 when he said the BoE would probably have to wait "several more months" before it could be sure that inflation pressures were no longer persistent.
In his latest speech, Pill said that monetary policy could remain restrictive even after the BoE starts to cut rates.
He also said real interest rates would rise as inflation and shorter-term inflation expectations ease back.
"The MPC will need to take this into account in setting Bank Rate," Pill said.
