OBR chair resigns over Budget leak

Richard Hughes has resigned as chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) following the watchdog's early leak of Budget details last week. 

Hughes announced his resignation after an investigation into the leak described it as the “worst failure” in the OBR’s 15-year history. 

In his resignation letter to Chancellor Rachel Reeves and treasury committee chair Meg Hillier, Hughes described the early publication of the watchdog's report on Wednesday as a “technical but serious error.” 

He said he was “certain” that the OBR “can quickly regain and restore the confidence and esteem that it has earned through 15 years of rigorous, independent, economic analysis” by implementing the recommendations of the report. 

The report said the independent financial watchdog should look at overhauling how it publishes sensitive material like Budget forecasts online. 

He added: “But I also need to play my part in enabling the organisation that I have loved leading for the past five years to quickly move on from this regrettable incident. I have, therefore, decided it is in the best interest of the OBR for me to resign as its chair and take full responsibility to the shortcomings identified in the report.” 

The OBR, which carries out independent economic analysis of government policy, requested an investigation after it released details of the Budget before it was announced by the chancellor last week. 

The error triggered fury in Westminster, with many Labour MPs in private saying that Hughes must resign over it. At a press conference this morning, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said it was a “serious error” and “massive discourtesy” to parliament. 

The investigation, published this afternoon, concluded that the OBR analysis, which contained details of what Reeves was to announce in the Budget, had not been leaked intentionally, but was the result of two errors in the watchdog's website setup. 

Both Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said the wrong person resigned and that Reeves should have stepped down aside. Badenoch said Hughes was being used as the chancellor's “human shield”.