The embattled Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has brought in a former top spook to investigate how its entire forecast was published early before Rachel Reeves stood up to deliver the Budget.
Alongside the watchdog’s oversight board, Ciaran Martin, former chief of the National Cyber Security Centre – part of the security services – will be involved in the probe.
In an unprecedented compromise of Budget secrecy, a link to the forecast document was found online more than 40 minutes before the Chancellor’s speech.
The OBR has apologised for the leak, which the watchdog has said was down to a “technical error”.
Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride has suggested there might be foul play involved in the leak, telling the Commons: “It is utterly outrageous that this has happened and this leak may constitute a criminal act.”
The leak was the culmination of weeks of Budget briefings and soundings in the media, which were criticised ahead of Reeves’ speech by Deputy Commons speaker Nusrat Ghani.
OBR chair offers to step down
OBR chairman Richard Hughes has told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that he has apologised to the Chancellor, and that he will step down if Reeves and the Treasury Committee decide that they would like him to.
“I regret the deep disruption that it caused. We’ve initiated an investigation into what happened. It will be overseen by the chair of our oversight board with expert input from Professor Ciaran Martin, former head of the NCSC.
“It will report to the treasury and the Treasury committee of parliament and identify the actions we take to ensure that it doesn’t happen again.”
In a last minute addition to the Budget speech, after the leak had become clear within the Chamber, the Chancellor said: “It is my understanding that the Office for Budget Responsibility’s Economic and Fiscal Outlook was released on their website before this statement.
“This is deeply disappointing and a serious error on their part. The Office for Budget Responsibility has already made a statement taking full responsibility for their breach.”