Better growth predictions

The Bank of England has upgraded its economic growth forecast and said that inflation should fall faster than had previously been predicted.

In his last inflation report as the Bank"s governor, Sir Mervyn King said inflation should drop to its target of 2% within two years.

The Bank of England have upgraded their growth prections according to Northampton accountants Harris & Co. In February, the Bank forecast that inflation would only fall to 2.3% in the same period.

Inflation has been above the 2% target since December 2009.

The rate of inflation - as measured by the Consumer Prices Index - is currently 2.8%.

Earlier on Wednesday, figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that unemployment in the UK had risen to 2.52 million.

The data showed that 15,000 more people were unemployed in the three months to the end of March, with the unemployment rate now at 7.8%.