Other news

Policy costings document November 2016

November 2016 All policy costings presented to the Office for Budget Responsibility at Autumn Statement 2016 were scrutinised and were certified as reasonable, central estimates were included in our forecasts. The Government’s Autumn Statement 2016 policy costings document briefly describes the methodologies underpinning these costings. In our November 2016 Economic and fiscal outlook we have published…

Front cover of IMF paper

IMF praises OBR in transparency review

The depth and breadth of the economic and fiscal analysis published by the OBR “can be considered as best-practice, and could be used as a benchmark by other advanced countries”, according to the International Monetary Fund’s Fiscal Transparency Evaluation for the UK. “While it is still relatively early in its track record, the OBR’s forecasting…

Welfare reforms save less than expected

Straightforward cuts in the generosity of benefits and tax credits are proving more reliable ways to cut the welfare budget than complex structural reforms to incapacity and disability benefits.

Welfare reforms save less than expected

Straightforward cuts in the generosity of benefits and tax credits are proving more reliable ways to cut the welfare budget than complex structural reforms to incapacity and disability benefits. Read more in our latest Welfare trends report.

Sir Charles Bean to join OBR

The Treasury Select Committee has approved the appointment of Sir Charles Bean, former Deputy Governor of the Bank of England and currently Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics, to join the OBR’s Budget Responsibility Committee.

Sir Charles Bean nominated to join OBR

The Chancellor of the Exchequer has nominated Sir Charles Bean, LSE professor and former Deputy Governor of the Bank of England, to join the OBR’s Budget Responsibility Committee. If the nomination is approved by the Treasury Select Committee, he would formally join the OBR at the beginning of 2017 (hence after the Autumn Statement), replacing…

Fiscal sustainability analytical papers

Following the cancellation of our 2016 Fiscal sustainability report we have published three Fiscal sustainability analytical papers today. They cover: the public sector balance sheet; the longer-term effects of student loan policy announcements over the past year; and how changes in mortality rate assumptions in the latest population projections would affect state pensions spending.  …

Supplementary forecast information release

Since the publication of our March 2016 Economic and fiscal outlook (EFO) we have received a request to publish further detail of our universal credit caseload forecasts. We have published this new supplementary forecast information on the main EFO page of our website.

New releases published tomorrow

Monthly commentary on the public finances – afternoon Public finances data for June 2016 will be published by the ONS and HM Treasury tomorrow, 21 July 2016, at 9:30am. Our regular monthly commentary will be published by early afternoon. It is worth noting that most of the period covered by these data preceded the EU…

Annual report and accounts 2015-16

Our Annual report and accounts detail our budget and finances for 2015-16, audited by the National Audit Office. It also sets out our achievements, details of our staffing structure, operations and our most recent budget settlement, which reflects the recommendations of the 2015 HM Treasury Review of the OBR.