Committee publication · Report · 16 July 2026 · HC 570

3rd Report - Appointment of Professor Jonathan Haskel as Chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility

Inquiry: Appointment of Professor Jonathan Haskel as Chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility

Government response deadline: 16 September 2026

Summary

The Treasury Committee reports on its pre-appointment scrutiny of Professor Jonathan Haskel, nominated by the Chancellor as Chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility. The Committee examined Haskel's professional competence and personal independence through oral evidence on 15 July 2026. The Committee consents to his appointment, though it rebukes the Treasury for compressed timelines and warns future committees need not accelerate scrutiny to meet Treasury deadlines.

Key findings

Committee satisfied that Professor Haskel possesses appropriate professional competence and personal independence for the OBR Chair role
Treasury provided only three weeks' notice before the pre-appointment hearing, falling short of the four-and-a-half-month advance notice the Committee had previously recommended
Professor Haskel was questioned on 20 topics including OBR independence, data security following the 2025 early-release incident, productivity forecasting, and fiscal rules assessment
Committee warns the Treasury that expedited scrutiny timelines cannot be imposed: future committees are entitled to ignore requests for speed and conduct full processes
Haskel holds MSc and PhD in Economics from LSE, was external member of Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee 2018–2024, and served as non-Executive Director of UK Statistics Authority

Tone

Procedural

Topics

public-financeappointmentsfiscal-policygovernance

Key actors

Professor Jonathan Haskel CBE, Dame Meg Hillier, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Richard Hughes, Office for Budget Responsibility, Treasury Committee, Bank of England, UK Statistics Authority

Notable line

“The Treasury cannot take a leisurely approach to such nominations and then expect us to expedite scrutiny to meet its timetable.”

Key Quotes

“The Treasury Committee has previously recommended that nominations to the BRC be made by the Chancellor at least four and a half months before the existing postholder steps down, to leave sufficient time for an alternative name to be put forward were the Committee not to consent to the appointment.”
— Treasury Committee · Committee citing precedent on nomination timelines

“I hope that by making this nomination now, the Committee will have time to conduct its pre-appointment hearing before summer recess to give the best opportunity for the new Chair to be in place for the Budget.”
— Chancellor of the Exchequer · Chancellor's justification for compressed timelines

“The Treasury cannot take a leisurely approach to such nominations and then expect us to expedite scrutiny to meet its timetable. Although we have proceeded at pace, a future Treasury Committee would well be within its rights to ignore any Treasury request for speed.”
— Treasury Committee · Committee warning to Treasury on procedural timelines

“We are satisfied that Professor Haskel has the appropriate professional competence and personal independence to carry out his role, and we consent to him being appointed as Chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility.”
— Treasury Committee · Committee's formal conclusion on appointment

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Source · parliament.uk record ↗