Clause 6
Statistics and Registration Service Bill
2:00 pm
David Gauke (South West Hertfordshire, Conservative)
I wish to ask some questions on the same matter as those asked by my hon. Friend: statistics becoming official statistics by order. First, there is a requirement that the appropriate Minister or authority consult the board, but as far as I can see there is no formal ability for the board to initiate that process. I assume that it will be able to put to a Minister informally any points that it wishes to make, but I would be grateful for confirmation of that.
Secondly, although a procedure for a statistic becoming an official statistic is set out in the clause, there is none for a statistic ceasing to be official. That might happen as a matter of course, presumably by order. I assume that it is of no significance that that is not specified, but I would again be grateful for clarification.
Finally, we welcome the inclusion in subsection (4) of the requirement for the board to produce a list of official statistics, because that is a matter for the board rather than the Minister. I suggest that when the annual list is produced, the board should highlight new official statistics and identify those that have ceased to be official statistics for any reason. One can imagine circumstances in which there might be controversy because a particular statistic was dropped. It might cause a political debate—this is a hypothetical case, I do not wish to make accusations. It would be useful for possible public debates if there were a comprehensive list each year of statistics that had ceased to be available as official statistics.