09 January 2009
By Vivienne Russell
Figures relating to council tax levels and collection rates, the House Price Index and NHS waiting times should be independently verified and branded as 'National Statistics', the UK Statistics Authority has said.
The authority, which came into being in April 2008, this week published the first statutory Code of Practice against which all official national statistics must be assessed. The code, issued on January 6, took immediate effect. The UKSA also singled out 20 sets of statistics not currently designated as such but which should be produced in compliance with the new code, thus taking on the 'National Statistics' banner.
Richard Aldritt, UKSA's head of assessment, told Public Finance that the groups of statistics identified for possible designation related to areas of great importance to people.
'These are matters of considerable concern and importance. We think they should be within the regime,' he said.
Public confidence in government statistics is low and received a further blow in December when Home Secretary Jacqui Smith was forced to apologise to MPs for misrepresenting knife-crime statistics.
A UKSA audit of the knife-crime statistics against the new code, also published on January 6, drew some damning conclusions.
It found that they were unclear, selective, lacked contextual information, and were used to draw inappropriate conclusions and make unsubstantiated claims.
The UKSA hopes that as more statistical sets are categorised as National Statistics it will help boost public confidence.
UKSA chair Sir Michael Scholar said: 'The authority wishes to see the National Statistics label recognised as an assurance that the statistics have been produced and explained to high standards, and that they serve the public good.
'By looking at whether the statistical system is meeting the needs of users of statistics and wider society, it will help, over time, to build trust in official statistics.'
Of the 20 statistical sets, 11 are subject to a Section 16 notification, which means ministers will be notified of the UKSA's intention to designate them as National Statistics. Ministers will have to justify any refusal to co-operate with the UKSA to Parliament.
The remaining nine sets are already being considered for designation by the department responsible for their collection.
Aldritt said he was unsure how ministers would react to the UKSA notification. 'I can't actually see why there would be much grounds for objection, but I think we'll have to wait and see,' he said.
The Royal Statistical Society welcomed the publication of the Code of Practice as a major step forward. Jill Leyland, who chairs the society's national statistics working party, told PF: 'The Code of Practice is a good first step… It sets standards of behaviour not just for statistical producers but for how Whitehall should use statistics.
'The key problem is the low level of public trust in statistics, which doesn't reflect the quality of the data. We need measures to tackle that and a lot of that is reducing government spin and perception of spin. Making statistics more independent is part of a route to that objective.'
Proposed new National Statistics areas
- Gross Affordable Housing Supply
- Council housing sales
- Collection rates for council tax and non-domestic rates
- Housing stock
- Council tax levels set by local authorities
- Official Development Assistance/Gross National Income Ratio
- Statistics on race and criminal justice
- Judicial and court statistics
- Statistics on the implementation of the Freedom of Information Act in central government
- National Child Measurement Programme
- Statistics on obesity, physical activity and diet
- House Price Index
- UK energy indicators
- Fuel poverty
- NHS 'referral to treatment' waiting times
- Accident and emergency activity
- Witness and Victim Experience Survey
- Scottish Health Survey
- Scottish House Condition Survey
- Scottish Crime and Victimisation Survey
PFjan2009
