Brown urged to rethink statistics plan

Gordon Brown has come under pressure to strengthen his plans to ensure there is no political interference in the production of official statistics.

Greater professional independence for the Office of National Statistics was a cornerstone of the chancellor's last Budget.

He pledged that an independent board would take responsibility for official statistics and there would be enhanced accountability to parliament.

But a report from the Commons Treasury committee said the plans risked missing a "once-in-a-generation opportunity" to improve public confidence in official statistics.

And the official Statistics Commission backed the warning, saying there should be a series of amendments to the proposals as they currently stand.

Wednesday's report said the chancellor's moves were a step in the right direction, but added that more radical reform is needed.

Noting that the ONS is responsible for just 250 of the 1,450 datasets produced by members of the Government Statistical Service, the MPs pointed to a hole in Brown's plans.

Ministers would remain "wholly responsible" for the statistics produced by their departments, giving them enough control that public confidence in official statistics could be undermined.

Amongst other changes, the committee said that the existing 40 hours pre-release access to non-market-sensitive data for ministers and government officials should be reduced to just three hours.

Opposition spokesmen should also be given pre-release access of one hour, said the MPs.

Committee member Michael Fallon, who led the inquiry, said: "Public confidence in official statistics is the key to reform.

"Confidence is currently at a worryingly low level, with just 17 per cent of adults in Great Britain believing that official statistics are produced without political interference, and only 14 per cent saying the government uses official figures honestly.

"The government mustn't miss this opportunity to ensure that official statistics are not only independent, but seen to be independent.

"Public confidence is the yardstick by which the success of the proposed legislation will ultimately be measured."

Backing that conclusion, Statistics Commission chairman Professor David Rhind said he endorsed "all the main arguments in the Treasury committee's report" and called on the government to develop its own proposals accordingly.