Statistics chiefs face scrutiny from committee of MPs
The Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee will question the UK Statistics Authority’s (UKSA) National Statistician, Chair, and Head of Regulation on its work to safeguard official statistics.
Meeting details
MPs will scrutinise the effectiveness of action taken by the UKSA to reduce misleading statistical claims by ministers and public figures. The quality and timeliness of economic statistics, particularly those used to declare a recession, will also be examined.
Investigations into the misuse of statistics have increased in recent years according to the 2021-22 annual summary of UKSA casework. The most common issues raised with UKSA’s regulatory team related to the misuse of data, public figures quoting statistics that could not be easily fact checked, and the skewed presentation of data to make misleading claims.