Committee to ask National Statistician about Covid-19 mortality numbers
6 May 2020
The Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee will look into statistics on deaths during the Covid-19 pandemic by taking evidence for the first time from the National Statistician, Professor Sir Ian Diamond, on Wednesday 13 May at 9.30am.
- Parliament TV: Work of the Office for National Statistics
- Inquiry: Work of the Office for National Statistics
- Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee
The Office for National Statistics publishes weekly data on the number of deaths in England and Wales. Their figures have shown a larger number of deaths than those used by the Government in its daily briefings and include deaths in all settings (hospitals, care homes, home and other places) where Covid -19 is determined to be a cause of death on the Death Certificate. Until recently, the figures given in the government's daily briefings only included deaths in hospitals where the patient had been tested positive for Covid-19.
The Committee will ask the ONS head about the quality and accuracy of data relating to Covid-19 deaths in the UK, and its role in informing national policy. The National Statistician will also be asked whether it is possible to make reliable international comparisons of death rates and investigate differences between the home nations.
Because of the necessity for social distancing, the Committee evidence session will be virtual. Watch the session on Parliament TV.
Witnesses
Wednesday, 13 May, 2020
From 0930
- Professor Sir Ian Diamond, National Statistician
- Ed Humpherson, Director General for Regulation at the UK Statistics Authority
Further information
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