James Murray launched a leak inquiry on Wednesday into unauthorized briefings of Budget policies to the media following the resignation of the head of Britain's fiscal watchdog. James Bowler, permanent secretary to the Treasury, will lead the investigation with the full support of Chancellor Rachel Reeves.
The inquiry follows the unprecedented early release of the Office for Budget Responsibility's economic and fiscal outlook last week. The watchdog published its outlook hours before the Budget statement on November 26. Richard Hughes, head of the OBR, resigned on Monday over the inadvertent early publication of the watchdog's key document.
Someone leaked several major tax-raising policies from the Budget to the press ahead of the official statement, including suggestions the Chancellor might raise income tax. Subsequent leaks indicated this would not proceed due to improved forecasting.
Parliamentary Scrutiny
Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle sharply criticized the media briefings, branding it a "hokey-cokey Budget". The criticism reflects widespread concern over premature disclosure of significant fiscal policies.
Dame Meg Hillier, Labour chairwoman of the Treasury Committee, questioned the effectiveness of such investigations. "Leak inquiries have a habit of not finding someone responsible," she told the Commons on Wednesday. "But if somebody is found responsible, will they follow the lead set by Richard Hughes?"
Murray declined to speculate on the outcome of the leak inquiry but emphasized the government's commitment. "The Government take our obligations to this House very seriously, and last week we produced a Budget that delivers on our priorities for the British people," he said.
Review and Future Measures
The permanent secretary to the Treasury will conduct a comprehensive review of security processes to inform future fiscal events. Murray pledged to "work closely with the OBR to ensure that robust security arrangements are in place before the spring forecast and for all future forecasts".
"As I said when I was again at this despatch box closing the Budget debate yesterday, the Government put the utmost weight on Budget security, including the prevention of leaks of information," Murray told MPs. "A leak inquiry is now under way with the full support of the Chancellor and the whole Treasury team."
Murray also addressed speculation surrounding a letter the OBR sent to the Treasury Committee last Friday. "The Chancellor was aware of that letter and was content for it to be published, and she agreed that with the permanent secretary," he stated.
The OBR letter contributed to claims the Chancellor had "misled" voters regarding public finances. The letter indicated Reeves was aware of a small forecast surplus when she delivered her November 4 speech.
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
