UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves said on Tuesday that the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has lowered its forecast for UK economic growth in 2026 from 1.4% to 1.1%. The revision was carried out in two stages: the November forecast of 1.4% was first adjusted to 1.3% and then to the current level.
The OBR left its growth projections for subsequent years unchanged: 1.6% in 2027 and 2028, and 1.5% in 2029 and 2030. Reeves stressed that average annual growth over the forecast period remained broadly unchanged: the watchdog has simply reallocated the timing of GDP growth, slower in 2026 and faster in 2027–2028.
The announcement was made as part of a biannual fiscal update that Rachel Reeves presented to Parliament. The previous 1.4% forecast was published in November 2025, when the chancellor set out her second annual budget.
