At its meeting today, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) maintained the Bank Rate unchanged at 10 percent. Inflation increased in both March and April to reach 7.8 percent, moving outside the top end of the Bank's objective range of 3 - 6 percent. This reflects the implact of the recent increases in VAT, electricity tariffs and fuel prices. Nonetheless, much of this increase is transitory in nature and the inflaton outlook remains positive in the meduium term, which is the focus of monetary policy. For more information, see the press release accompanying the decision.