The Office for Statistics Regulation wrote to Anna Feuchtwang about Chancellor’s use of poverty statistics on BBC Breakfast

12 October 2021 · Ed Humpherson, Director General for Regulation, Office for Statistics Regulation

The letter is dated 12 October 2021. The Office for Statistics Regulation published it as Ed Humpherson to Anna Feuchtwang: Chancellor’s use of poverty statistics on BBC Breakfast. Below are 4 passages from the letter in the regulator's own words.

What the Office for Statistics Regulation wrote

“The UK Statistics Authority has recently responded to a similar query from Bridget Phillipson MP on this matter where the Authority Chair repeated our view that there are legitimate reasons to use different measures of poverty, which are highlighted in our review of income-based poverty statistics and in a blog post.”

“For that reason, we distinguish between statements that use or draw directly from statistics from those that make broader assertions about the success or impact of policy, and do not consider it appropriate for us to comment on the latter.”

“Our role is to make sure that public debates are well informed by accurate, impartial and objective statistics, and not ourselves to become a player in those debates.”

“It is of course important to public understanding that statements should be clear about the measure and time period being referred to, particularly where other measures present a different trend, and we have reiterated this point to HM Treasury in the context of poverty statistics.”

From Ed Humpherson, Director General for Regulation, Office for Statistics Regulation, letter of 12 October 2021. Read the full letter.

Receipt