OBR chief quits over error that led to Budget blunder

A damning report into last week's leak said it was the worst failure in the watchdog's 15-year history

- Millie Cooke

Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) chief Richard Hughes has resigned after a damning new report said the unprecedented leak of last week's Budget was the worst failure in the watchdog's 15-year history, as it revealed that the error had happened before, during the chancellor's spring statement.

The investigation concluded that the OBR's leadership must take “immediate steps to change completely” how it publishes reports containing sensitive forecasts, after official analysis documents were uploaded to the watchdog's website, releasing details of the Budget almost an hour early.

The report said that “ultimate responsibility” for the set of circumstances that led to the leak rests with the leadership of the watchdog itself, piling pressure on Mr Hughes. But it also said the Treasury and the Cabinet Office should have addressed the fact that the OBR's operation was “significantly underpowered”, by either changing the way it published its analysis documents or increasing the watchdog's resources.

Mr Hughes, who has served as chair of the OBR since 2020 and was reappointed to the job for a second five-year term in July this year, said he was resigning to allow the OBR to “quickly move on from this regrettable incident”. In a letter to the chancellor and the chair of the Commons Treasury committee, he said he took “full responsibility” for “the shortcomings identified in the report”.

“By implementing the recommendations in this report, I am certain the OBR can quickly regain and restore the confidence and esteem that it has earned through 15 years of rigorous, independent economic analysis,” the OBR chief said.