Angry savers to join pig protest at Bank

Campaigners say savers are being taken for “mugs” as soaring energy and household costs have exacerbated the bleak future they are facing.

A combination of high inflation and the Bank of England’s base rate being held at a historic 0.5 per cent low has left savers struggling to find accounts which will give them a real return.

The consumer price index (CPI), a broad measure of the cost of living, increased to 4.5 per cent in August, moving closer to a three-year high.

Members of campaign group Save Our Savers will voice their anger outside the Bank today, at the same time as the next base rate decision is announced.

They will be accompanied by Bertie the Pig, who will take a bashing to reflect the pressure campaigners say they are under.

Save Our Savers campaigner Simon Rose said: “All savers are seeing their capital whittled away as inflation outstrips negligible interest rates.

“For the millions of pensioners who depend upon their savings, the future is terrifying.”

Saga director-general Ros Altmann urged greater recognition of the “damage” savers are experiencing and called for more thinking “outside the box” to help them.