Finance
UK's Reform floats change for the Bank of England and budget office
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on February 18, 2026
2 min readLast updated: February 18, 2026
Quick Summary
Reform UK proposes changes to the Bank of England and budget office, focusing on inflation and including more business people in decision-making.
Reform UK Proposes Overhaul of Bank of England and Budget Office
Proposed Changes to Financial Institutions
LONDON, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Britain's right-wing Reform UK party said it would revamp the Bank of England and the country's budget arbiter as it seeks to balance promises of change to voters with reassurances to investors that it will not unleash economic turmoil if elected.
Reform UK’s Vision for the Bank of England
Saying it backed two institutions it has previously criticised, the party of Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage said it wanted more business people to sit on the BoE's interest rate-setting panel.
Criticism of the Office for Budget Responsibility
Reform - currently riding high in opinion polls - would also strip the central bank of the "distractions" of its climate change work to focus more squarely on inflation.
Political Context and Implications
Robert Jenrick, named as the party's would-be finance minister on Tuesday, kept up Reform's criticisms of the BoE over its past bond-buying and said it took "its eye off the ball on inflation", according to excerpts of a speech he was due to make in London's finance district on Wednesday.
But he said the BoE remained a force for stability and its independence would be maintained.
The Office for Budget Responsibility - whose projections underpin the government's fiscal plans - would be joined by "super-forecasters" chosen via competitions for the most accurate modelling of the impact of finance ministry decisions.
Jenrick accused the OBR of underestimating the benefit of tax cuts and overestimating the benefits to the economy of low-skilled migration.
Reform will have to tread carefully as it seeks to portray itself as a responsible guardian of the economy before the next national election, due in 2029.
Former Conservative Prime Minister Liz Truss sidelined the OBR with her 2022 "mini-budget", which sent the bond market into a nosedive with its promises of huge tax cuts. She also floated the idea of reviewing the BoE's mandate.
Jenrick served as a junior minister in the short-lived Truss government.
(Writing by William SchombergEditing by Gareth Jones)
Key Takeaways
- •Reform UK proposes changes to the Bank of England.
- •The party aims to include more business people in decision-making.
- •Focus on inflation over climate change for the BoE.
- •Criticism of the Office for Budget Responsibility's projections.
- •Reform UK seeks to maintain economic stability.
Frequently Asked Questions about UK's Reform floats change for the Bank of England and budget office
1What is the Bank of England?
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom, responsible for issuing currency, managing monetary policy, and maintaining financial stability.
2What is inflation?
Inflation is the rate at which the general level of prices for goods and services rises, eroding purchasing power.
3What is monetary policy?
Monetary policy refers to the actions taken by a central bank to manage the money supply and interest rates to achieve macroeconomic goals.
