Budget Responsibility and National Audit Act 2011

Part 1 U.K. Budget responsibility

1 Charter for Budget Responsibility U.K.

(1) The Treasury must prepare a document, to be known as the Charter for Budget Responsibility, relating to the formulation and implementation of fiscal policy and policy for the management of the National Debt.

(2) The Charter must in particular set out—

(a) the Treasury's objectives in relation to fiscal policy and policy for the management of the National Debt,

(b) the means by which the Treasury's objectives in relation to fiscal policy will be attained (“the fiscal mandate”), and

(c) matters to be included in a Financial Statement and Budget Report prepared under section 2.

(3) The Charter may contain such other material as the Treasury considers appropriate (and see also section 6).

(4) The Treasury must lay the Charter before Parliament.

(5) The Treasury may from time to time modify the Charter.

(6) When the Charter is modified the Treasury must lay the modified Charter before Parliament.

(7) The Charter (or the modified Charter) does not come into force until it has been approved by a resolution of the House of Commons.

(8) The Treasury must publish the Charter and any modified Charter once approved by the House of Commons.

Commencement Information

I1 S. 1 in force at 23.3.2011 by S.I. 2011/892, Sch. 1

2 Annual Budget documents U.K.

(1) The Treasury must prepare a Financial Statement and Budget Report for each financial year.

(2) The contents of a Financial Statement and Budget Report must conform to any provision set out in the Charter.

(3) The Treasury must lay each Financial Statement and Budget Report before Parliament.

(4) The Treasury must publish each Financial Statement and Budget Report.

Commencement Information

I2 S. 2 in force at 23.3.2011 by S.I. 2011/892, Sch. 1

3 Office for Budget Responsibility U.K.

(1) There is to be a body corporate called the Office for Budget Responsibility.

(2) Schedule 1 contains provision about the Office.

Commencement Information

I3 S. 3 in force at 4.4.2011 by S.I. 2011/892, Sch. 2

4 Main duty of Office U.K.

(1) It is the duty of the Office to examine and report on the sustainability of the public finances.

(2) The duty imposed [F1 on the Office] by this section includes, in particular, the duties imposed by subsections (3) and (4) [F2 and section 4A.]

(3) The Office must, on at least two occasions for each financial year, prepare—

(a) fiscal and economic forecasts, and

(b) an assessment of the extent to which the fiscal mandate has been, or is likely to be, achieved.

(4) It must also, on at least one occasion for each financial year, prepare—

(a) an assessment of the accuracy of fiscal and economic forecasts previously prepared by it, and

(b) an analysis of the sustainability of the public finances.

(5) Any forecast, assessment or analysis prepared by the Office under subsection (3) or (4) must be included in a report.

(6) Any report which the Office makes in pursuance of its duty under this section must include an explanation of the factors which the Office took into account when preparing the report, including (in particular)—

(a) the main assumptions made by the Office, and

(b) the main risks which the Office considered to be relevant.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 4(2) inserted (15.10.2024) by Budget Responsibility Act 2024 (c. 24), ss. 1(2)(a), 2(2); S.I. 2024/1026, reg. 2

F2 Words in s. 4(2) inserted (15.10.2024) by Budget Responsibility Act 2024 (c. 24), ss. 1(2)(b), 2(2); S.I. 2024/1026, reg. 2

Commencement Information

I4 S. 4 in force at 4.4.2011 by S.I. 2011/892, Sch. 2

[F3 4A Announcement of fiscally significant measures U.K.

(1) If a Minister of the Crown is proposing to make a fiscal announcement to the House of Commons in respect of—

(a) a measure which is fiscally significant, or

(b) two or more measures where any combination of the measures is fiscally significant,

the Treasury must, before the announcement, request the Office to prepare a section 4(3) report that takes account of the measure or measures.

(2) If, in the case of a measure in respect of which a request was required to be made in accordance with subsection (1) and in respect of which no such request has been made, the Office is of the opinion that the measure (either alone or in combination with other such measures) is fiscally significant, the Office must as soon as is reasonably practicable—

(a) notify the Treasury Committee of the House of Commons of its opinion, and

(b) prepare a report that includes a costing for the measure (which may, but need not, be a section 4(3) report).

(3) A measure or combination of measures is “fiscally significant” if the measure, or combination of measures, has a costing for a specified period that exceeds a specified percentage of the gross domestic product for a specified period.

“Specified” means specified in, or determined in accordance with, the Charter for Budget Responsibility.

(4) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply in respect of a measure which—

(a) is intended to have effect for a temporary period only, and

(b) is in response to an emergency.

(5) The Charter may make provision for the purpose of supplementing this section (including provision about the meaning of expressions used in the preceding subsections that are not defined elsewhere in this section or in other provisions of this Act).

(6) If the Treasury proposes to modify the Charter so as to include provision by virtue of this section, a draft of the proposed provision must be published at least 28 days before the modified Charter is laid before Parliament under section 1(6).

(7) In this section—

• “fiscal announcement” means an announcement in respect of any matter mentioned in section 1(2)(c);

• “Minister of the Crown” has the same meaning as in the Ministers of the Crown Act 1975;

• “request” means a request made in accordance with the Charter (whether the request is described in the Charter as a commission or in some other way);

• “section 4(3) report” means a report under section 4 which contains forecasts and an assessment under subsection (3) of that section.

(8) It does not matter for the purposes of this section whether or not two or more measures are, or are proposed to be, announced at the same time or at different times.

(9) Paragraph 29 of Schedule 1 applies in respect of the reference in this section to the Treasury Committee of the House of Commons as it applies in respect of references to that Committee in Schedule 1.]

Textual Amendments

F3 S. 4A inserted (15.10.2024) by Budget Responsibility Act 2024 (c. 24), ss. 1(3), 2(2); S.I. 2024/1026, reg. 2

5 How main duty is to be performed U.K.

(1) The Office has complete discretion in the performance of its duty under section 4 (but subject to subsections (2) and (3) of this section and sections 6 and 7).

(2) The Office must perform that duty objectively, transparently and impartially.

(3) Where any Government policies are relevant to the performance of that duty, the Office—

(a) must have regard to those policies, but

(b) may not consider what the effect of any alternative policies would be.

Commencement Information

I5 S. 5 in force at 4.4.2011 by S.I. 2011/892, Sch. 2

6 Guidance as to how main duty is to be performed U.K.

(1) The Charter for Budget Responsibility may include guidance to the Office about how it should perform its duty under section 4, including (in particular) guidance about the time at which it is to prepare any forecast, assessment or analysis required to be prepared under subsection (3) or (4) of that section.

(2) But the Charter must not make provision about the methods by which the Office is to make any such forecast, assessment or analysis.

(3) The Office must, in the performance of its duty under section 4, act consistently with any guidance included in the Charter by virtue of this section.

(4) If the Treasury proposes to modify the guidance included in the Charter by virtue of this section, a draft of the modified guidance must be published at least 28 days before the modified Charter is laid before Parliament under section 1(6).

Commencement Information

I6 S. 6 in force at 4.4.2011 by S.I. 2011/892, Sch. 2

7 Efficiency etc U.K.

The Office must aim to carry out its functions efficiently and cost-effectively.

Commencement Information

I7 S. 7 in force at 4.4.2011 by S.I. 2011/892, Sch. 2

[F4 7A. Duty to co-operate with the Scottish Fiscal Commission U.K.

The Office must, so far as necessary for the performance of the Scottish Fiscal Commission’s functions, co-operate with the Commission.]

Textual Amendments

F4 S. 7A inserted (1.4.2017) by The Scottish Fiscal Commission Act 2016 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2017 (S.I. 2017/241), arts. 1(2), 4

8 Reports U.K.

(1) This section applies to any report which the Office makes in pursuance of its duty under section 4.

(2) The Office must—

(a) publish the report,

(b) lay it before Parliament, and

(c) send a copy of it to the Treasury.

Commencement Information

I8 S. 8 in force at 4.4.2011 by S.I. 2011/892, Sch. 2

9 Right to information U.K.

(1) The Office has a right of access (at any reasonable time) to all Government information which it may reasonably require for the purpose of the performance of its duty under section 4.

(2) The Office is entitled to require from any person holding or accountable for any Government information any assistance or explanation which the Office reasonably thinks necessary for that purpose.

(3) “Government information” means information held by any Minister of the Crown or Government department.

(4) This section is subject to any enactment or rule of law which operates to prohibit or restrict the disclosure of information or the giving of any assistance or explanation.

Commencement Information

I9 S. 9 in force at 4.4.2011 by S.I. 2011/892, Sch. 2

10 Superseded statutory provisions U.K.

The following are repealed in consequence of the preceding provisions of this Part—

(a) section 27 of, and Schedule 5 to, the Industry Act 1975 (economic model and forecasting);

(b) sections 155 to 157 of the Finance Act 1998 (fiscal stability);

(c) the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2010.

Commencement Information

I10 S. 10 in force at 23.3.2011 by S.I. 2011/892, Sch. 1