May inflation hits 7.7, highest in nearly four decades
Bank of Canada expected to hike rates by 75 basis points in July
Central bank made 39;serious communications mistake39; ex governor
Meeting minutes, transparency could restore credibility economists

OTTAWA, June 23 Reuters The Bank of Canada has come under a rare attack from critics after misjudging inflation and locking itself into rigid forward guidance that prevented it from reacting swiftly as prices surged and Canada39;s economy began to overheat.

One of the world39;s leading central banks, it is now being forced to play catchup, hiking interest rates more aggressively than originally expected just as Canadian household debt levels hit new highs, surging far above other G7 nations.

With a possible recession looming, the bank is facing questions from politicians, economists and even the general public about the opacity of its decisionmaking process and renewed calls for it to release minutes, a common practice among many of its peers.

For its part, the Bank of Canada has admitted missteps and is promising more transparency, including an analysis of inflation forecast errors, due in July.

But it still faces near daily attacks by politician Pierre Poilievre, the frontrunner to lead the opposition Conservative Party, who regularly takes to social media to accuse the central bank of being both incompetent and a government puppet.

He has also pledged to fire Governor Tiff Macklem if elected, a move that…