Bank of England moved too slowly on inflation, says Asda chairman Business

The conflict in Ukraine has driven up energy prices and cut off a key source of agricultural staples, including wheat and sunflower oil. Global food prices hit a record high following the Russian invasion in late February.

“They’re going to go up and they’re going to stay high for a while I’m afraid,” said Lord Rose, who also pointed to the disruption caused by the lockdowns in China.

The retail giant has warned that the UK now risks a price-wage spiral in which wage rises fuel further inflation, or sink into a stagflationary environment of rising costs and weak growth.

“They are both evil, and the government has a very difficult and tricky road ahead,” he said, warning that it took a decade to overcome the latest surge in inflation in the UK.

Lord Rose, the former chairman of the Remain campaign, added: ‘The government can’t fix all the problems, but the government could do some things. He could talk to the industry.

“He could talk to food retailers to make sure we reduce any additional costs.”

He said Asda will “do what we can” to reduce cost increases for customers.

The Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee is expected to vote this week to raise interest rates to 1pc, the highest since the financial crisis, in a bid to rein in high cost increases by dampening demand.