The newly-published minutes from the most recent meeting of the Bank of England's monetary policy committee (MPC) have given fresh hope to those calling for a cut to the base rate of interest.

According to the minutes, the committee was split three ways before voting to hold interest rates at five percent at the start of August, with one member voting to put rates up by a quarter of a percent, and another calling for a similar-size cut.

While the Bank is under pressure to hold or even increase rates so as to curb inflation, business leaders and consumer groups have argued that a cut is necessary to spur the economy back to life, with many now confident that the latter course will be chosen before the year is through.

One economist argued that the three-way split seen in the August meeting illustrates "just how fine a line the Bank of England is having to tread".

"The majority of MPC members thought the current weakness in the economy and the resulting spare capacity was enough to bear down on inflation without the need for an increase in the interest rate," Hetal Mehta, senior economic adviser to the Ernst & Young Item Club told the Scotsman.

"Item [Club] still believes that interest rates will stay on hold during the summer months, but the possibility of a cut in November seems increasingly likely."