The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Balloon gives you the chance to set interest rates to control inflation. As the pilot, your job is to keep the balloon flying at a steady height of 200 metres. In the same way, the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee tries to keep inflation steady at the Government's 2% target.

There are four versions of the game, each with its own selection of weather events that pushes the balloon up and down. The game links the weather to common economic events that move inflation away from the 2% target.

The effect of these events on the height of the balloon varies - just as in the real economy it is hard to predict inflation.

When the game finishes, you'll see a chart showing the balloon's flight path. This gives you a percentage score out of 100. Your score is based on movements of the balloon away from the 2% target line. The closer you keep inflation to 2%, the higher your score.

Bon voyage!

Click here to launch The Monetary Policy Balloon

If your machine does not have Flash player (version 7 onwards) installed or enabled, you can follow this link to download the latest player or alternatively you can use the audio-only version of the game.