UK watchdog says government has left 'historically modest' budget leeway

The OBR said Hunt's budget had "just enough to meet the government's fiscal rules on our central forecast with underlying debt falling as a share of GDP in 2028-29 by a historically modest margin of 8.9 billion pounds ($11.3 billion)". "This margin is a small fraction of the risks," the OBR added. In November, after Hunt's mid-year fiscal update, the OBR had forecast he had 13 billion pounds of headroom.

British finance minister Jeremy Hunt has left himself and his successors "historically modest" leeway to meet self-imposed fiscal targets, the Office for Budget Responsibility said after he presented his annual budget on Wednesday. The OBR said Hunt's budget had "just enough to meet the government's fiscal rules on our central forecast with underlying debt falling as a share of GDP in 2028-29 by a historically modest margin of 8.9 billion pounds ($11.3 billion)".

"This margin is a small fraction of the risks," the OBR added. In November, after Hunt's mid-year fiscal update, the OBR had forecast he had 13 billion pounds of headroom. ($1 = 0.7861 pounds)