"It is the duty of the Office to examine and report on the sustainability of the public finances"
Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves MP and OBR Chair Richard Hughes have exchanged letters on the potential fiscal implications of higher paths for real GDP growth. We have published these letters below.
Since the publication of our October 2021 Economic and fiscal outlook (EFO) we have received a request for further detail on the impact of policy changes on the number of taxpayers by band. We have published this new supplementary forecast information below and on the October 2021 EFO page.
The Chancellor has announced that the Spring 2022 forecast will take place on Wednesday 23 March. That day we will release the latest outlook for the economy and public finances.
Government borrowing in November 2021 was £17.4 billion, down £4.9 billion on last November. Year to date borrowing of £136.0 billion is down 46 per cent on the same period last year and is £7.1 billion below our October forecast profile. That undershoot reflects stronger than expected receipts (thanks largely to a more resilient labour…
The Treasury Select Committee has today approved the appointment of Prof. David Miles CBE to the Budget Responsibility Committee, following a hearing before MPs on 15 December. David will formally begin his appointment in January, replacing Prof Sir. Charlie Bean who steps down at the end of this year. We thank Prof Sir Charlie Bean…
The Chancellor of the Exchequer has nominated Prof. David Miles CBE, Imperial College London professor and former Monetary Policy Committee member at the Bank of England, to join the OBR’s Budget Responsibility Committee. If the nomination is approved by the Treasury Select Committee, he would replace Prof. Sir Charlie Bean who finishes his term at…
Richard Hughes distils the key messages from our latest Economic and fiscal outlook in his press conference presentation and accompanying speaking note.
The successful vaccine rollout has allowed the economy to reopen largely on schedule, despite continuing high numbers of coronavirus cases. The vaccines’ high degree of effectiveness, combined with consumers’ and businesses’ surprising degree of adaptability to public health restrictions, has meant that output this year has recovered faster than we expected in March, boosting tax…
Government borrowing in August 2021 was £20.5 billion, down £5.5 billion from the same month last year. Year to date borrowing of £93.8 billion is now £31.9 billion below our March forecast profile. That reflects both stronger than expected receipts (thanks largely to a faster than expected economic recovery) and lower than expected spending (due…
Government borrowing in July 2021 was £10.4 billion, down £10.1 billion from the same month last year. Year-to-date borrowing of £78.0 billion is now £26.1 billion below our March forecast profile. That reflects both stronger-than-expected receipts (thanks largely to a faster-than-expected economic recovery) and lower-than-expected spending (due to the faster-than-expected unwinding of covid-related government support).