It is universally acknowledged that savers have been stuffed by the financial crisis while record low interest rates have been a boon to many borrowers. But as the fifth anniversary of the credit crunch passed on Thursday there were signs that the balance is finally beginning to turn.
Since the Bank of England froze its base rate at an historic low of 0.5 per cent (nearly two years into the crisis, in March 2009) the average high street savings account has shrunk to just 1.09 per cent. Although the strategy may have saved the country from catastrophe, for pensioners and other savers who depend on an income, the impact has been raw.
But a gloomy assessment of the economy from the Bank of England this