Policy levers to relieve pressure

Last August, to the relief of many homeowners, the Reserve Bank’s governor, Michele Bullock, announced a cut in interest rates and expressed confidence that inflation was heading in the right direction. But on Tuesday, the RBA hiked rates for the first time in over two years, raising the cash rate by 25 basis points to 3.85%. Guardian columnist and chief economist of the Australia Institute, Greg Jericho, talks to Nour Haydar about what the rate hike means, why he sees it as ‘cowardly’ and what it all has to do with the Ashes