The budget deficit fell slightly in November relative to last year and remains down year-to-date in 2017-18. As anticipated in our November forecast, a statistical reclassification has lowered public sector net debt significantly.

Following Lord Burns’ appointment as Chairman of Ofcom, with effect from 1 January, he will step down as a non-executive member of the Office for Budget Responsibility with effect from 31 December. The process for appointing his successor will commence shortly.

We are pleased to congratulate our former colleagues Mirko Licchetta and Michal Stelmach on being named this year’s winners of the prestigious Rybczynski prize for their essay ‘Health Spending: it’s not just about ageing’. The Rybczynski Prize is awarded annually to the best piece of writing on economics, as judged by the Society of Business…

Since the publication of our November 2017 Economic and fiscal outlook we have received a request for further detail underlying our housing supply forecast. We have published this new supplementary forecast information on the November 2017 EFO page.

We have revised down our productivity and GDP forecasts and, despite lower borrowing this year, revised up our forecast for the budget deficit. The Chancellor has raised the deficit further with higher public spending and a net tax giveaway. Read more in the November 2017 Economic and fiscal outlook.

November 2017 All policy costings presented to the Office for Budget Responsibility at Autumn Budget 2017 were scrutinised and were certified as reasonable, central estimates were included in our forecasts. The Government’s Autumn Budget 2017 policy costings document briefly describes the methodologies underpinning these costings. In our November 2017 Economic and fiscal outlook we have published…

Robert Chote distils the key messages from our latest Economic and fiscal outlook – published today – in his press conference presentation and accompanying speaking note.

The UK economy has slowed this year as households’ real incomes and spending have been squeezed by higher inflation. GDP growth has been a little weaker than we expected in March, but once again we have been more surprised by the strength of employment growth and the corresponding weakness of productivity growth. The persistence of…

The ONS has reclassified English housing associations to the private sector with effect from today. Our November 2017 forecast will reflect this reclassification.

Since the publication of our March 2017 Economic and fiscal outlook we have received a request for further detail underlying our business rates forecast. We have published this new supplementary forecast information on the March 2017 EFO page.

Halfway through 2017-18, borrowing is £2.5 billion down on the same period in 2016-17. While this suggests we will need to revise down full-year borrowing in our November forecast, it remains likely that the deficit will rise relative to 2016-17. Self-assessment income tax receipts in January and February are expected to fall year-on-year.

Robert Chote distils the key messages from our latest Forecast evaluation report – published today – in his press conference presentation and accompanying speaking note.

The OBR is likely to revise down potential productivity growth in its November forecast, weakening the outlook for the public finances. This would be partially offset by lower equilibrium unemployment, more hours worked and downward revisions to borrowing last year.

We have decided to push back the publication of our 2017 Welfare trends report from 10 October to later in the financial year. The report will focus on the forecasting of Universal credit ahead of next year’s planned surge in the number of UC recipients.

Government borrowing was £0.2 billion lower than last year over the first five months of 2017-18. Our March forecast predicted a rise in borrowing for 2017-18 as a whole, with self-assessment income tax paid in the second half of the year expected to fall relative to 2016-17.