Bank of England set to end monthly rate meetings after new law passes

LONDON, May 4 (Reuters) - The Bank of England will later this year move to a schedule of eight monetary policy meetings a year rather than 12, after reforms to Britain's central bank became law on Wednesday.

The BoE wants to follow the example of the U.S (Other OTC: UBGXF - news) . Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank and hold interest rate-setting meetings every six weeks, rather than once a month.

The change needed legislation to pass through the British parliament, and the BoE said the soonest it would skip a monthly meeting would be in October 2016.

The Bank of England and Financial Services Act is intended strengthen the BoE's governance and accountability, in part by putting the BoE's monetary, financial and prudential regulation committees on the same statutory footing.

"Ensuring the Bank of England is well positioned to fulfil its vital role of overseeing monetary policy and financial stability is a key part of the government's economic plan," junior finance minister Harriet Baldwin said in a statement. (Reporting by Andy Bruce, editing by David Evans)