Mr. Robert Chote:

There is no one size fits all answer to that question. It is important to tailor the structure to the particular parliamentary systems and domestic institutions. A very clear lesson is that any new organisation or restructured organisation must have a well defined remit rather than one that can be called into question or becomes a political issue if it chooses to do something or not. It is important it is set a clear task and that it is resourced adequately to do that task.

If one says that a body is to do X, Y and Z but only funds it to do X, it wrecks the credibility of the body. One of the key things we have tried to emphasise is the need to recognise and be upfront about the uncertainty in respect of forecasting and costings. We have an explicit process in regard to every costing on which we sign off and in incorporating it into our forecasts we give it an uncertainty ranking, an idea I stole from the Australians. This is based on the quality of the underpinning data and on how complicated the modelling and the process of calculating the answer are. We ask if it is a measure that will result in big and unpredictable changes in people's behaviour. Only a madman sets fiscal policy on the basis that a set of medium-term fiscal forecasts and the costings they involve will be correct in every respect. One of the biggest services these bodies can provide is to ensure that it is front and centre from the point of view of the public and that the people making the decisions recognise that as much as anybody else.