Rachel Reeves poised to unveil tax rises worth £26bn in budget, figures reveal

Surprise early release of OBR documents shows chancellor doubling her fiscal headroom

Rachel Reeves’s budget is expected to announce tax increases worth £26bn to more than double her fiscal headroom, according to figures published before her speech to the commons.

In a highly unusual development triggering an immediate reaction in the financial markets, figures from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) published on its website before the chancellor’s speech, showed her measures would leave £22bn of headroom in five year’s time.