The UK’s statistics watchdog has ordered the Workplace for Nationwide Statistics (ONS) to urgently overhaul its knowledge assortment strategies throughout the subsequent 4 weeks, amid rising alarm over the reliability of official financial figures used to form authorities and Financial institution of England choices.
The intervention comes after a collection of delays and knowledge high quality issues which have prompted widespread criticism from economists, policymakers and MPs. The Workplace for Statistics Regulation (OSR), which displays the standard of official knowledge, has demanded that the ONS publish a fully-resourced enchancment plan to “restore confidence” in its surveys.
It follows rising frustration over missed publication deadlines for key knowledge, together with commerce, producer value inflation, and providers inflation figures, in addition to long-standing issues about collapsing response charges to the Labour Drive Survey — one of many core measures of the UK jobs market.
As soon as extensively trusted, the Labour Drive Survey now has response charges beneath 20%, down from 50% a decade in the past — a decline that has eroded confidence in statistics essential for assessing employment tendencies, productiveness, and wage progress.
In an interim report, the OSR mentioned there was an “urgent need to modernise” how the ONS collects and manages knowledge, noting the company is struggling greater than worldwide counterparts to recuperate post-pandemic.
Dame Meg Hillier, chair of the Home of Commons Treasury committee, warned that incorrect knowledge might have real-world penalties for households and companies. “Wrong decisions made by these institutions can mean constituents defaulting on mortgages or losing their livelihoods,” she mentioned.
“We know that these figures, on which decision makers rely, are unreliable — and that is a huge problem,” Hillier added. “The Treasury cannot confidently assess employment levels, and the Bank of England may be making interest rate decisions without an accurate picture of the economy.”
ONS statistics are utilized by the Financial institution of England and the Workplace for Price range Duty (OBR) to information vital choices — from setting rates of interest to shaping fiscal coverage. Considerations have grown that choices affecting hundreds of thousands could possibly be primarily based on flawed or incomplete knowledge.
The OSR acknowledged that the ONS had made progress in 2025 in bettering survey response charges and integrating new knowledge sources — together with VAT information and rail and rental costs — into nationwide accounts and inflation statistics. Nevertheless, it criticised the gradual adoption of administrative knowledge throughout authorities, citing cultural and sensible challenges.
It additionally highlighted broader points with each social and enterprise surveys, warning that declining engagement poses a “significant quality issue” that would “significantly impact” the trustworthiness of the UK’s financial indicators if left unaddressed.
“Inadequate investment” in survey assortment and outdated working practices have been recognized as central causes of the ONS’s struggles, with the regulator demanding a transparent plan for prioritising funding and bettering knowledge high quality over the following three months.
In an announcement, an ONS spokesperson acknowledged the seriousness of the scenario: “We recognise and share concerns about data quality and are addressing these as a matter of urgency. Our new strategic business plan includes a renewed focus on our core economic and population statistics.”
The regulator is anticipated to overview the ONS’s full response this autumn and publish its last evaluation. For now, the message is evident: with out swift and decisive reform, the credibility of Britain’s official statistics — and the insurance policies they affect — stays in danger.
