HM Treasury has today launched its search for the next chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility.
The role has been vacant since December, when Richard Hughes stepped down following an investigation into the OBR accidentally publishing details of the 2025 Budget early.
The probe found that the leak had not been “simply a matter of [someone] pressing the publication button on a locally managed website too early”. Chief secretary to the Treasury James Murray said there were “systemic issues” at the OBR and that the issue exposed at the 2025 Budget “was not a new one”, with sensitive information believed to have been accessed early on previous occasions.
Hughes had been chair of the watchdog since 2020 and in July 2025 was appointed for a second five-year term, with the backing of the chancellor Rachel Reeves.
In his resignation letter, Hughes said the early release of budget documents was 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 investigation. Hughes 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 advert for the role says it is full-time and will again be for a five-year fixed term. It will come with a salary of between £150,000 and £208,100.
In a foreword to the job ad, Treasury permanent secretary James Bowler said: “This is one of the most significant public appointments in the UK’s economic and fiscal landscape.
“We are seeking an outstanding leader with deep macroeconomic and/or fiscal expertise, strong public credibility, experience of working constructively across organisational boundaries, and the ability to lead a high-calibre analytical organisation.
“The successful candidate will bring sound judgement, integrity and the confidence to provide honest, evidence-based assessments, including where these may be challenging for government.”
Bowler added that the role is “a demanding and high-profile role, but also a uniquely rewarding opportunity to contribute to the UK’s economic stability, transparency and long-term prosperity”.
The OBR is the UK’s official independent economic and fiscal forecaster, responsible for examining and reporting on the sustainability of public finances. It was created in May 2010 after the coalition government was formed and placed on a statutory footing in 2011. Sir Alan Budd was its first chair, for just three months, handing over the reins Robert Chote, who served for 10 years until 2020, when Hughes got the job.
Hughes started his career at the Treasury in 2000 where he worked on a range of domestic and international macroeconomic issues and led the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review. Following a brief secondment to the French Ministry of Finance in 2007, he joined the International Monetary Fund in 2008 where he headed the Fiscal Affairs Department’s Public Finance Division and worked on fiscal reform in a range of advanced, emerging, and developing countries.
He returned to HM Treasury between 2016 and 2019 as director of fiscal policy where he oversaw the government’s fiscal strategy, debt management, and treasury operations and served as acting chief economist.