George Osborne to make Autumn Statement on December 4

(Reuters)

George Osborne will make his Autumn Statement on December 4, the Treasury announced tonight.

The statement, an update of government finances, is one of his most important pronouncements of the year and is regarded as an important indicator of what will be in the next Budget.

"Can confirm that autumn statement will be 4th Dec,” the Chancellor said on his Twitter account last night. “That's when we'll set out next steps in plan to secure the economic recovery.”

The statement includes the most up to date forecasts by the Office of Budget Responsibility. In last year’s Autumn Statement the Chancellor cancelled a 3p fuel duty rise that had been intended to start in January 2013, and announced that that austerity measures will continue into 2018.