Britannia Radio

Dodgy Stats from a Dodgy government with a dodgy leader.

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SKY NEWS     13.12.08 . Ice Storm Smashes US
Brown 'Say Sorry For Dodgy Stats'

Conservatives have demanded an apology from Prime Minister Gordon 
Brown over "dodgy" knife crime figures.

It follows Downing Street admitting it ignored the objections of 
statisticians to the early release of data on such offences.

Number 10's Permanent Secretary Jeremy Heywood acknowledged that 
"insufficient attention" was paid to officials from the NHS 
Information Centre.

They had protested against the release on Thursday of figures showing 
an apparent fall in the number of teenage stab victims.

Mr Heywood's admission came in a letter to the chairman of the UK 
Statistics Authority Sir Michael Scholar.

The watchdog had spoke out publicly against the Government's 
"premature, irregular and selective" use of the statistics.

Sir Michael said ministers had breached the code of conduct which 
they had themselves approved to fend off accusations of spin.

Mr Heywood said that the head of the civil service would now hold 
discussions about the lessons that could be learned from the incident.

But Conservative leader David Cameron said an apology was needed from 
Mr Brown.

He told Sky News: "We are not going to get anywhere with a government 
giving us dodgy statistics and deliberately disobeying what its own 
Statistics Authority is saying."
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"We are not going to get anywhere with a government giving us dodgy 
statistics and deliberately disobeying what its own Statistics 
Authority is saying.
It really is an appalling way to behave. The Prime Minister has got 
to own up to it, he's got to apologise for it and he's got to make 
sure it never happens again.
Tory leader David Cameron talks to Sky News
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Sir Michael, in an official complaint to Mr Heywood, described the 
release of "unchecked" figures on knife crime - due for publication 
in March - as "corrosive of public trust".

The Home Office figures suggested a crackdown on knife crime in 10 
hotspot areas, including London, Manchester and Birmingham, had 
prompted a 27% fall in teenagers being taken to hospital with stab 
wounds.
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"If Government ministers have sanctioned the selective and 
manipulative spinning of these statistics, it is reckless and 
irresponsible. Labour should immediately publish the full figures so 
that we can see the truth." - Shadow home secretary Dominic Grieve 
quoted in the Daily Telegraph
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POLITICS HOME   13.12.08
COMMENT -
Today, Radio 4 at 07:34
Crackdown needed on "contaminated" statistics, says Labour MP

Tony Wright, Chairman of Public Administraion select committee

Mr Wright called for an edict "across Whitehall" to prevent the 
selective use of statistics following critcism of the govenrment's 
use of knife crime figures.

"When a breach occurs, and there have been some breaches, we have to 
crackdown on it," he said.

He added: "The temptation has to be resisted because the greater good 
is to restore people's confidence in official statistics themselves".

He also said that politicians should merely comment on statistics 
rather than have any influence on their presentation, but praised 
progress that had been made.

"Statisticians produce statistics and politicians comment upon them - 
that has to be the order of things," he said.

He added: "The determination to put statistics on a an independent 
basis is one of the longer term important things this government has 
done.

"That is why I'm so determined that it doesn't get contaminated or 
bypassed by party political temptation."