Immigration minister urged to withdraw 'smear' against statistics chief or resign

By James Chapman
Last updated at 6:17 PM on 04th March 2009
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Immigration minister Phil Woolas was today urged to withdraw an unprecedented 'smear' against Britain's independent statistics body or resign.

Mr Woolas was embroiled in an escalating row with official statisticians after accusing them of 'sinister' motives in publishing figures showing one in nine UK residents was born overseas.

As critics said the minister had effectively accused the Office of National Statistics of racism, Downing Street gave him only lukewarm support.

The Prime Minister's official spokesman was forced to insist that the Government believed in the independence of the body, which collects and publishes impartial data.



Jacqui Smith has been urged to sack Phil Woolas for his attack on the ONS

The Daily Mail revealed yesterday that the minister had tried to prevent the organisation publishing the immigration data and accused it of 'playing politics'.

Today the row deepened as Sir Michael Scholar, Britain's statistics watchdog, warned experts were being 'pilloried' for publishing objective information.
Sir Michael, head of the UK Statistics Authority, released a letter rejecting Mr Woolas's claim that the release of immigration statistics has been 'naive and politically motivated'.
'Whether you call it naivety or openness, statisticians must be encouraged to publish independent and objective statistics, not pilloried for doing so,' he said.
Sir Michael said data on trends in the country of birth and nationality of workers in the UK had been released because they were 'in the public interest'.
Senior Tory MP Michael Fallon, a former chairman of the Commons statistics panel, said Home Secretary Jacqui Smith should fire Mr Woolas if he would not withdraw his attack.
'It's disgraceful, undermining the ONS. You can't have ministers attacking its independence. He should withdraw the comments or be sacked,' Mr Fallon said.
Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Chris Huhne said: 'Phil Woolas should get his tanks off the statisticians' lawn.
'Ministers cannot lay into independent statisticians simply because they do not like the figures they produce or dislike the timing of when they are ready.
'This spat shows that there should be greater independence from the Home Office, which has form in trying to rig the date, spin and content of statistical releases.'
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Grayling said: 'This whole row is becoming extremely unedifying.
'When ministers appear more concerned about making sure the figures tell a good story about their achievement than actually tackling the problems in our immigration system and dealing with the law and order challenges we face this is a clear sign of a Government that is out of touch and has been in office too long.'
But Mr Woolas said he was right to be concerned that in publishing the figures outside its normal release schedule, the ONS had been seeking to influence the political debate.
He said he was 'appalled' at the way the body had highlighted figures showing one in nine British residents was born abroad.
He accused the ONS of trying to 'grab headlines' in order to show it was a 'newly liberated and independent body'.

'The ONS said they released the figures because they said they were topical,' the minister said.
'They have got to be very careful, in my view, that they don't enter what is the most inflamed debate in British politics.'
Asked whether the Prime Minister endorsed Mr Woolas's views, Mr Brown's spokesman replied: 'Phil Woolas chooses his own words and it is right that he does so.

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