Podcast Leader: Could the Liz Truss OBR talks be a turning point?

The Prime Minister, Chancellor and Office for Budget Responsibility held crisis talks amid growing concerns about the economy.

The meeting reportedly lasted less than an hour and came after a week of economic turmoil in Britain, when the pound hit a record low and investors sold off some government bonds.

Despite calls for a change in budget plans, the prime minister doubled down on her tax cut policy on Thursday, again arguing that rapid growth is needed to pull the country out of recession.

But economic experts and some Tory MPs have criticized the dichotomy between tax cuts and the Bank of England’s decision to raise interest rates, saying the two economic actions do not work together.

The OBR’s public statement about the meeting contained very little detail, but revealed that it would provide the chancellor with a week’s economic forecast later today – which will be based on “an independent assessment of the economic and fiscal outlook and the impact of government policy”.

Evening Standard economics expert Stephen King discusses how he thinks the crisis talks have gone, whether the government will now take OBR forecasts more seriously and how early supporters of the mini-budget are turning around.

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