The Financial Times has announced the launch of its Chancellor Game: an interactive experience that challenges players to step into the shoes of the UK’s chief financial minister and devise a plan for the Budget. The publisher says the game is available to both subscribers and non-subscribers.
FT visual stories and investigations editor Sam Joiner said: “The game simulates the real-world trade-offs that chancellor Rachel Reeves will have to contend with as she plans for Labour’s first Budget in 14 years.”
The FT says the Chancellor Game is a part of the its in-depth coverage of the 2024 UK Autumn Budget. Alongside news, opinion and analysis, this will include Inside Politics, Stephen Bush’s daily newsletter, and Political Fix, a weekly UK politics podcast presented by Lucy Fisher.
The game was created by the Financial Times with economic modelling provided by the Resolution Foundation, an independent think-tank.
The publisher says readers have six weeks to devise a plan and must answer questions on health, defence, investment, welfare and tax. They must stick to a set of fiscal rules, but they also need to keep their cabinet colleagues, the prime minister — and ultimately voters — happy.
The baseline fiscal forecast used in this game is based on the Office for Budget Responsibility’s Economic and Fiscal Outlook from March 2024, added the FT. The Resolution Foundation has extended this to 2029-30, assuming that overall tax and spending levels remain at steady shares of GDP.
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