The figures that Robert Chote gave you are um... in the right ah... ballpark.
Still, that was clearly not Robert Chote's motivation in "clarifying" the OBR's position.
But there is another, less gloomy, way of looking at the past few months, which Mr Chote will also surely be considering.
But the economic story, as the OBR director, Robert Chote said himself, is that the effort to cut the overall deficit has stalled.
Mr Chote questioned the decision to protect the NHS, saying that it was "striking" the extent to which this would intensify the spending squeeze for other departments.
BBC: Budget: UK faces worst cuts since World War II says IFS
Mr Chote told reporters that the government's plans were consistent with sustaining an - albeit slow - economic recovery, although he warned such predictions were never assured.
Its director, Robert Chote, does not seem to think the past two years casts any doubt on Mr Osborne's original plans, which, of course, the OBR endorsed.
The government-appointed body's chairman Robert Chote also said that the creation of one million private sector jobs in that time would "more than offset" falling public sector employment.
But in the big public arguments with Labour about austerity, growth, and the underlying potential of the UK economy, Robert Chote continues to offer the Chancellor invaluable support.
Office for Budgetary Responsibility chief Robert Chote said growth had been slower than predicted when the coalition came to power because of "disappointing" consumer spending, business investment and trade.
So, assuming no big change in their approach between now and November, we have to expect the director, Robert Chote, to be delivering some bad news to Mr Osborne in the coming weeks.
Mr Bercow paid tribute to Chancellor George Osborne for his "bold" decision to ensure that the Treasury committee would have a veto on the appointment of the Office for Budget Responsibility chief Robert Chote.
BBC: Commons Speaker calls for sweeping new committee powers
Robert Chote's letter to the prime minister is an embarrassment for David Cameron - and marks yet another way in which his big set-piece speech on the economy has failed to work out as Downing Street hoped.
We have to wait for the explanation from the OBR itself, but the chancellor says Robert Chote and his colleagues have looked at the years leading up to the crisis, and decided that growth was even less sustainable than we thought.
No-one knows for sure, but in his letter, Mr Chote makes clear that the OBR thinks the Eurozone and high energy prices have probably played the major role in growth turning out to be so feeble, not the planned austerity measures.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies, for example, reckons the OBR will put the structural current deficit this year at 4.9% - even under its most optimistic scenario, where Robert Chote and his colleagues consider the loss of growth this year to be temporary.
But, as I said at the start, at least a small part of me can't help thinking Mr Osborne will be a little bit grateful, when he stands up on Budget day, that Robert Chote has reminded everyone how independent he is, even if Downing Street does not feel that way today.
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