Project Fear doomsayers suffered a fresh humiliation today when the Bank of England hiked its growth forecasts for UK plc.

The Bank now expects the economy to expand by 2 per cent this year - compared to the 1.4 per cent it had predicted in November.

It has also pushed up the estimates for 2018 and 2019 by 0.1 per cent - to 1.6 per cent and 1.7 per cent respectively.

Bank governor Mark Carney (pictured today) now expects the economy to expand by 2 per cent this year - compared to the 1.4 per cent it had predicted in November

The figures will be a boost for Theresa May, and are the latest nail in the coffin of the grim predictions about an economic crash that were peddled in the run-up to the EU referendum.

The Treasury had warned that Britain could have crashed into recession by the end of last year, while Bank governor Mark Carney suggested a Leave vote was the biggest risk to the country's economy.

Mr Carney conceded recently that the assessment had been too gloomy - saying that the measures taken to calm markets and reassure consumers had worked.

He said that Brexit was no longer the biggest risk we face.

The latest forecasts come after the Bank's chief economist Andy Haldane admitted last month the Bank had suffered a 'Michael Fish moment' in making overly gloomy predictions last year over the impact of a Brexit vote.

The Bank announced today that it is keeping rates on hold at 0.25 per cent after impressive growth figures, which showed gross domestic product rose by 0.6 per cent in the final three months of 2016.

UK plc has now grown by 0.6 per cent in each of the last three quarters, confounding forecasts of a slowdown.

The latest growth upgrades by the Bank will be a boost for Prime Minister Theresa May

The Bank, which has now raised its growth outlook twice in the last three months, said the 'most significant' reason for the upgrades was the Government spending boost revealed in the Chancellor's Autumn Statement last November.

It added that a solid global economy, surging stock markets and cheap borrowing were also helping support growth.

But rate-setters also warned that a consumer spending slowdown is still on the cards as the weak pound drives up inflation.