The following information has recently been circulated via the Migration Statistics User Forum Jiscmail discussion list*.
The Public Administration Select Committee (PASC) is examining the topic of migration statistics, as part of a programme of work on statistics and their use in government. The written and oral evidence which was presented to the committee has now been made available for download from the Migration Statistics section of the PASC website, available here.
Details include both written and oral evidence as outlined below:
The Committee is undertaking a programme of work on statistics and their use in government by means of a series of ten studies. One of these studies looks at migration statistics.
Written Evidence
Written evidence (
PDF 796 KB)![]()
Oral Evidence
24 April 2013
Witnesses: Dr Scott Blinder, Director, The Migration Observatory, Councillor Philippa Roe, Leader, Westminster City Council, and Professor John Salt, Co-Director, Migration Research Unit, University College London
Jon Simmons and Chris Kershaw, Home Office, Guy Goodwin and Ben Humberstone, Office for National Statistics.
Further background information can be found here:- PASC to take evidence on Migration statistics. On this page, the purpose of the inquiry is outlined as being:
The purpose of the inquiry: to assess the quality of migration statistics produced by the Office for National Statistics and the Home Office. Are they sufficiently accurate, detailed, meaningful and timely for the purposes to which they are put? The Committee will take evidence from three users of official migration statistics, who can describe the statistics’ current strengths and weaknesses as well as those aspects of the statistics they would like to see improve. The second part of the session will give Committee the opportunity to question the producers of migration statistics, who can talk about recent developments in the production of migration statistics and options for their improvement in future.
* The Migration Statistics User Forum Jiscmail discussion list is available to join here and aims to:
This is a forum for discussion of migration statistics that allows users to discuss their need for and use of the data and for producers to consult on presentation and changes. The main focus will be on figures for the United Kingdom, but this would not exclude discussion of migration statistics for other countries. In order to meet these objectives, members are encouraged to post discussions, respond to other users as appropriate and post their own proposals and publications.









