British Columbia Premier David Eby is calling on the Bank of Canada to end its cycle of interest rate increases, saying that tighter monetary policy is harming Canadians.
In a letter to Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem, Eby urges him to consider the “human impact” of higher interest rates, which the central bank has used to lower inflation from a peak of 8.1% in June 2022 to 3.3% today.
Premier Elby’s plea comes days ahead of the Bank of Canada’s next decision on interest rates that is scheduled for September 6.
The letter to Governor Macklem states: “In your role as governor, I urge you to consider the full human impact of rate increases and not further increase rates at this time.”
The Bank of Canada had raised interest rates 10 times since March 2022 and the central bank’s benchmark overnight interest rate currently stands at 5%, its highest level in 22 years.
The Bank of Canada said in its own statement that it has no comment on Premier Eby's letter.
However, Governor Macklem has said previously that the central bank is prepared to further lift interest rates to get inflation’s annualized growth back down to its 2% target.
