Wed, 10 Dec 2025

Wed, 10 Dec 2025 Too many unauthorised pre-Budget leaks, says Reeves

The chancellor tells MPs many of the stories leaked to the media were inaccurate and "very damaging".

* Chancellor Rachel Reeves has admitted there were too many unauthorized leaks ahead of her Budget last month.
* The number of media stories suggesting what might be in the Budget led to criticism, with Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle calling it the "hokey-cokey Budget".
* A review is being conducted into the Treasury's processes and a forensic examination of IT systems is underway after an Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) gaffe.
* Reeves has stated that she is frustrated by the leaks and speculation, which were often inaccurate and damaging.
* An investigation is taking place into the source of the leak to the Financial Times on 13 November, which suggested that plans to increase income tax had been dropped.
* The Chancellor has said that a review of Treasury processes is underway and that the National Centre for Cyber Security is conducting a forensic examination of IT systems.
* OBR chairman Richard Hughes resigned after the watchdog's assessment of the Chancellor's plans was inadvertently made available online before she delivered her speech.
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