A former Bank of England policymaker has indicated he believes interest rates should start rising this summer to help the economy start to adapt to the aftermath of the financial crisis.

Andrew Sentance, an external member of the BoE from 2006 to 2011, acknowledged the British recovery is weak but says allowing businesses to be reliant on cheap money will be damaging in the long-term.

He advocates gradual rises and says the longer the Monetary Policy Committee delays this move the more likely it is to be difficult to implement without causing disruption in the economy.

The views of Mr Sentance, now senior economic adviser at accountancy firm PwC, are in contrast to existing BoE members. They continue to signal an intention to keep rates on hold at 0.5% even if unemployment falls below the 7% threshold previously identified by Governor Mark Carney.