The Financial Times begins with news of the resignation of the chairman of the Office for Budget Responsibility following his early budget leak. Richard Hughes’ departure follows a review which found that “the same failings had allowed early access to the Spring Statement” and left concerns that “other Budgets may also have been compromised”.
For The Daily Telegraph, it’s “Reeves holds on as OBR chief is silenced.” Richard Hughes will now not appear before a Treasury committee following his resignation, “sparing Ms Reeves further criticism when she is already under pressure to resign.” In other Budget news, council homes valued at more than £2m will not face the new property tax introduced by the Chancellor, it reports.
The i Paper also publishes the departure of the OBR president from his first position, although it says that he was “forced to resign after contradicting the Chancellor.” Relations between the financial watchdog and the Treasury were at an “all-time low” after Richard Hughes decided to publish a timeline which he says challenged Reeves’ claims about the “difficulties he faced in balancing the books”.
The Times headline says the OBR chairman’s resignation came after being “publicly reprimanded” by the prime minister. A review of the anticipated release of the Budget found it was the “worst failure” in the office’s history. Singer Kylie Minogue appears on the front wearing Jonathan Anderson at the Fashion Awards, where the designer won the top award.
The Guardian says Richard Hughes took “full responsibility” for the budget leak when he left the OBR, while Sir Keir Starmer “failed to express confidence in the senior economist”. Labor MP Tulip Siddiq also appears on the cover after being sentenced to two years in jail in Bangladesh after being tried in absentia over corruption allegations. He said the process had been “flawed and ridiculous from start to finish.”
The Daily Mail calls former OBR chairman Richard Hughes “the scapegoat for Reeves’ budget lies”, saying the government has “no shame”. He writes that Hughes “exposed the truth about his financial ‘black hole,'” referring to the funding gap he had indicated he needed to cover.
The Independent also talks about the “budget black hole” but Sir Keir Starmer denies that “we’re not fooling anyone” about it. Now the “row over Labour’s briefings” – which Rachel Reeves and Sir Keir discussed with ministers over improving the OBR forecast – is “deepening”, says the Indy.
The Daily Express focuses on a speech the Prime Minister gave on Monday in which he referenced the impact of Brexit on the UK economy. Sir Keir Starmer made “promises to appease Brussels as he rushed to defend his chancellor under fire”, it says.
The Daily Mirror calls for “justice for the lost victims” of the Post Office Horizon scandal. Police could now bring corporate manslaughter charges in cases where staff took their own lives after being accused of theft due to a faulty computer system, the Mirror reports.
The Sun says a former England and Premier League football player has been arrested over an allegation of attempted rape. The newspaper says the man, who is reported to have played for England in the 2010s, has been released on bail pending further investigations after being arrested at Stansted Airport following an allegation from a former partner.
“The striker clashes with the right winger,” writes Metro about an X dispute between former England player Gary Lineker and far-right activist Tommy Robinson. Robinson had shared a photo of Lineker with her daughter-in-law.
There are “tears for applause” for “humble hero” Kevin Sinfield, writes the Daily Star. The former rugby league player, currently on an ultramarathon challenge, has raised more than £10 million for motor neurone disease, the paper says.
