Statistics policy
This page highlights some of the current parliamentary material available on statistics policy. This includes select committee reports, briefing papers on current legislation and other subjects produced by the parliamentary research services, and the latest Early Day Motions put down by MPs.
Standard Notes
| 01.03.2013 | International Year of Statistics: Social Indicators article |
| A brief article on Statistics2013 - the International Year of Statistics. This is an article in the March 2013 edition of the Social Indicators research paper. |
| 27.04.2012 | Measuring well-being |
| How is measurement of well-being or "happiness" being investigated in the UK to complement more traditional measures of progress? |
| 13.10.2010 | Statistical Literacy -Social Indicators article |
| 20.10.2010 is the first UN World Statistics Day. It is also the day that the Royal Statistical Society is launching its 10 year campaign for statistical literacy getstats. Its vision is 'A society in which our lives and choices are enriched by an understanding of statistics'. To mark these events this article looks briefly at the concept of statistical literacy, why it is said to be important and gives a few examples of what organisations have done around the world to promote it. |
| 11.08.2010 | Unemployment by Constituency: changes to working-age rates |
| From August 2010, the ONS has switched from using the 'working-age' population to using the whole population aged 16 to 64 as the basis upon which a variety of headline labour market statistical indicators are presented. This note provides details on the change and looks at its effect on the Library's JSA claimant rate. |
| 29.07.2010 | How to spot spin and inappropriate use of statistics |
| Statistics can be misused, spun or used inappropriately in many different ways. This is not always done consciously or intentionally and the resulting facts or analysis are not necessarily wrong. They may, however, present a partial or overly simplistic picture. This guide details some common ways in which statistics are used inappropriately or spun and some tips to help spot this. The tips are given in detail at the end, but the three essential questions to ask yourself when looking at statistics are -Compared to what? -Since when? -Says who? |
Research Papers
| 01.03.2013 | Social Indicators |
| A compendium of the latest social statistics. This edition includes articles on: Why has crime fallen around the world?; International Year of Statistics. |
| 29.07.2009 | Parliamentary Trends: Statistics about Parliament |
| This paper provides a summary of statistics about Parliament. It brings together figures about both the House of Commons and Lords; their membership and activities.
The aim is to provide comparisons over time, though periods may vary according to relevance and the availability of consistent data. Some are for parliamentary sessions (a parliamentary session begins each year with the Queen's Speech) some by calendar year and some by financial year. This should be borne in mind when comparing different sets of information. |
| 14.01.2009 | Social Indicators |
| This Research Paper summarises a wide range of social statistics. Subjects covered include crime and justice, defence, education, elections, health and population. This edition of Social Indicators includes an article from the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress, Washington , D.C..
This edition includes:
Social background of the United States Congress 2009
Local authority finance in a recession
2011 UK Census of Population
Underage drinking
Excess winter mortality |
| 24.04.2008 | Social Indicators |
| Social Indicators. [Includes articles on 'Gambling in New South Wales, Australia' and 'A new era for UK official statistics: the launch of the UK Statistics Authority, and Topical Subject Pages on world food prices, the weather in 2007 and excess winter mortality.] House of Commons Library Research Paper 08/37. |
| 10.10.2007 | Social Indicators |
| Social Indicators. [Includes articles on Independence for Official Statistics, Greenhouse Gases, and Clostridium Difficile, and a Topical Subject Page on Teenage Pregnancy] House of Commons Library Research Paper 07/70. |
Early Day Motions
| 25.10.2010 | GOVERNMENT FUNDING OF THE INSTITUTE OF FISCAL STUDIES |
| That this House is concerned that 95 per cent. of Institute of Fiscal Studies 5.1 million funding comes from so-called research grant contracts, details of which are not itemised in ... |
| 12.07.2010 | MAKING SENSE OF STATISTICS PUBLICATION |
| That this House recognises the importance of the appropriate use of statistics in policy-making and in public discourse; further recognises that parliamentarians and other policymakers ... |
| 15.06.2009 | DISARRAY IN UK OFFICIAL INFLATION FIGURES |
| That this House notes the two official measures of inflation, the Retail Prices Index and Consumer Prices Index, and the disparity in figures between the two measures; further notes ... |
POST Papers
| 17.09.2012 | Measuring National Wellbeing |
| This POSTnote summarises the latest research on measuring national wellbeing, its components and causes, and examines some policy implications. |
