Rachel Reeves Says She Has Launched An Inquiry Into Budget Leaks
Chancellor Rachel Reeves expressed frustration about the number of leaks in front of the Treasury select committee on Wednesday. (Alamy)
3 min read
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has told MPs she was frustrated by the number of leaks in the run-up to her Budget last month, and said an inquiry is ongoing to find out how they happened.
Giving evidence at the Treasury select committee on Wednesday, Reeves said the number of leaks had been "unacceptable" and that there had been "too much speculation".
"Much of those leaks and speculation were inaccurate," she told MPs.
The government's decision to hold the Budget on 26 November, about a month later than usual, resulted in a longer period of speculation about what would be announced, alongside several leaks to the media.
For example, the major decision not to raise income tax following suggestions that it would increase was reported by the Financial Times before it was announced by Reeves late last month. The Chancellor cited this case in her appearance before the committee this morning.
"I want to state on the record how frustrated I am, and have been, by these incidents and the volume of speculation and leaks," said Reeves.
"And that is why I'm doing something about it, because we cannot allow this to happen again.
"A leak inquiry is underway with my full support, being led by the Permanent Secretary at the Treasury, and we are also conducting a review of the Treasury security processes to inform future fiscal events."
She insisted that she was "in control" of all media briefings emanating from the Treasury when asked by committee chair, Labour MP Dame Meg Hillier.
"Of course, as I said yesterday in Parliament, I did not disclose confidential information, but as I've also been clear, there have been leaks.
"That's why we set up a leak inquiry, and that is why we are doing this work. So that investigation is happening at the moment to ensure future budget security," the Chancellor said.
Reeves also said it was unlikely that the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) would have a new head before its next forecast in Spring 2026, explaining that the government must "go through a rigorous process" to find a successor to Richard Hughes.
Hughes resigned as chair of the independent financial think tank at the beginning of this month after the OBR accidentally posted details of the Budget online before Reeves announced them in the House of Commons on Budget day.
"The inadvertent early dissemination of our Economic and fiscal outlook on 26 November was a technical but serious error," said Hughes in his resignation letter.
"The report the OBR has submitted to the Treasury and the Treasury Committee of the House of Commons sets out how and why it happened and identifies the further actions the Office will take to ensure that it never happens again...
"But I also need to play my part in enabling the organisation that I have loved leading for the past four 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 for the shortcomings identified in the report."
