division_name: Opposition Day &#8212; [2nd Allotted Day] &#8212; Office for Budget Responsibility (Manifesto Audits)
motion: <p class="" pid="a.380.3/1" pwmotiontext="yes">I beg to move,</p>
  
  <p class="" pid="a.380.3/2" pwmotiontext="yes">That this House believes the role of the Office for Budget Responsibility should be enhanced to allow it to independently audit the spending and tax commitments in the general election manifestos of the main political parties, and calls for legislative proposals to enable this to be brought forward at the earliest opportunity.</p>
  
  <p class="" pid="a.390.2/1" pwmotiontext="yes">I beg to move an amendment, to leave out from &#8220;House&#8221; to the end of the Question and add:</p>
  
  <p class="" pid="a.390.2/2" pwmotiontext="yes">&#8220;recognises the important role of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) in producing independent forecasts for the economy and the public finances, and the value this has had in restoring trust in official forecasts; notes that the OBR is a newly independent institution and judges that it would not be appropriate to involve it in party political matters at its first election; notes the comments made by the Chairman of the OBR, Robert Chote, in a letter dated <phrase class="date" code="2014-01-15">15 January 2014</phrase> to the House of Commons Treasury Committee that &#8216;to embark on this exercise in a rush, or with insufficient resources, could be very disruptive to the parties and very damaging to the OBR&#8217;; and supports the view expressed in that letter that it is &#8216;better to consider these issues at the beginning of the next Parliament&#8217;.&#8221;</p>
  
  <p pid="a.427.2/1" pwmotiontext="yes">Question put (<phrase class="standing-order" code="31(2)" pwmotiontext="yes">Standing Order No. 31(2)</phrase>), That the original words stand part of the Question.</p>
  
  <p class="italic" pid="a.427.2/2" pwmotiontext="yes">The House divided:</p>
  
  <p pid="a.427.2/3" pwmotiontext="yes">Ayes 218, Noes 289.</p>