Autumn statement 2023

On 22 November, Jeremy Hunt delivered an autumn statement to the House of Commons. He presented the latest independent forecasts produced by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) and announced changes to his tax and spending plans.

Relative to the March budget, the economic forecast was gloomier, but the chancellor had a fiscal windfall to spend as a result of higher inflation pushing up tax receipts. He chose to spend it on new tax cuts, allowing public service budgets to become less generous in real terms and maintaining only a tight margin of headroom against his main fiscal rules. 

The Institute for Government set out the key choices facing Hunt in advance of the statement, and analysed the statement itself through commentary, podcasts and events afterwards.

Watch as Thomas Pope, IfG deputy chief economist, reacts to the autumn statement