OBR warns Reeves’s budget still leaves public finances in ‘vulnerable’ position

Damaging events could knock finances off course, says Treasury's independent forecaster as it downgrades growth outlook

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The Treasury's independent forecaster has warned that Rachel Reeves's tax-raising budget will still leave the public finances in a vulnerable" position despite her more than doubling the UK's financial buffer.

The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said the potential for damaging events - such as a global stock market crash or future pandemic - to knock the government's finances off course remained high, even while the chancellor increased her headroom from 9.9bn to 22bn.