Three members of the Bank of England's interest rate setting committee voted for a cut in rates at their last meeting, minutes of the session have revealed.

Members of the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted by six to three to keep rates on hold at 4%.

The three advocating a cut were Christopher Allsopp, Kate Barker and Steven Nickell.

They thought the rate should be reduced to 3.75%.

House price fears

The MPC has left rates on hold since November last year to try to safeguard the UK economy.

According to the minutes, at the October meeting the committee agreed the decision was finely balanced.

The MPC said that several arguments were advanced for keeping rates on hold.

Some members argued that a cut would affect house prices, household borrowing, and consumption, which were already rising strongly.

Inflation worries

The minutes said a rate cut would risk "creating an unsustainable increase in debt which might subsequently unwind sharply".

And this would increase the risk of the Bank of England undershooting its inflation target, which is 2.5% plus or minus 1 percentage point.

The committee's split vote makes an interest rate cut before the end of the year seem more likely.

In a speech to business leaders in Manchester earlier this month the Bank of England governor, Sir Edward George, hinted that rates might have to come down to counter the effects of tumbling stock markets.