More on the spending review later, but first I’ve just been hunting for the independent forecasts from the OBR on the public finances and I can find… nada. Just when you could do with some serious independent analysis of Mr Osborne’s and Mr Alexander’s wheezes…. silence, well almost.
All OBR have published today is four very brief reports on:
- Labour market participation rate forecast
- CPI inflation
- Annually Managed Expenditure forecast by department
- Projections of trend employment and population
Hardly worth bothering really – have they been nobbled? Cut? De-quango-ed? We should be told!
STATECRAFT - improving government 
It is strange that there was nothing last month. However, we only have a couple of weeks to wait until the revised forecasts on 29 Nov.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201011/cmhansrd/cm101101/text/101101w0007.htm
Hopefully the credibility and independence seen at the IFS will be clearly evident in the OBR under Robert Chote.