Rishi Sunak hints at Budget delay as he fails to name day
Rishi Sunak has hinted at delays to the budget after he failed to announce a date when publishing the new forecasts, as is normally expected.
Sunak said he had instructed the OBR to prepare to present an economic and fiscal forecast to parliament on October 27, according to reports.
The forecast normally accompanies a budget or spending review by the chancellor – but neither were announced.
“It is unusual for the date to be announced like this. Given the unusual choreography, it could well mean the budget will be delayed. Or perhaps the Treasury is deferring a decision until closer to the time, Andrew Goodwin, UK economist at Oxford Economics, told The Times.
A three-year spending review is planned for the autumn, for which a new OBR forecast is required.
Speculation of a budget delay was first sparked earlier this month by reports that officials advised Sunak that waiting until the end of spring 2022 might provide him with more time to understand the true impact on firms, first reported by The Guardian.
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