This book investigates how the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) functions as a mechanism of technocratic economic governance within the shifting landscape of British political economy. Ben Clift, a professor of political economy, utilizes a framework of institutional analysis to examine how the OBR influences fiscal policy and economic discourse. By situating the OBR within the broader context of British capitalism, the author argues that technocratic institutions play a critical role in mediating the state's response to global financial instability, Brexit, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Experts identify this work as a significant contribution to the study of technocratic governance and the political economy of the UK. Readers frequently note the academic density of the prose, which is well-suited for scholars and policy analysts interested in the intersection of fiscal oversight and political power.