The MPC kept its main policy rate at 0.75 per cent, following the hike in August

The Bank of England raised its benchmark interest rates today to 0.75 per cent, its highest level since the depths of the financial crisis in March 2009 when the benchmark was slashed to 0.5 per cent.

Despite the rise, sterling fell 0.8 per cent after the decision as BoE Governor Mark Carney reiterated that future interest rate rises would be "gradual and limited"

All nine members of the BoE's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted to raise the base rate by a quarter of a per cent.

Economists had been predicting a split vote thanks to mixed signals for the strength of the UK economy.

But the MPC said the economy had recovered from a seasonal slowdown exacerbated by the Beast from the East.

"The MPC continues to judge that the UK economy currently has a very limited degree of slack," the committee said in minutes published with its decision.

"Unemployment is low and is projected to fall a little further. In the MPC’s central projection, therefore, a small margin of excess demand emerges by late 2019 and builds thereafter, feeding through into higher growth in domestic costs than has been seen over recent years."

Speaking after the decision, Mr Carney said that growth in pay has increased, with further wage rises expected this year.

However, wage growth has remained below pre-crisis level and household debt has risen sharply.

Analysts said this means some households may struggle with the rise in borrowing costs, dragging down the consumer spending that drives much of the economy.

Mr Carney played down those concerns, saying that the costs of servicing that debt is lower now than it was before the crisis.

Here's how the day unfolded: