Statistics crisis leaves Bank and chancellor flying blind

MPs identify failings and deep-seated problems in the UK's economic data machine that need urgent attention. Barney Macintyre and Simon Briscoe report

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This week a committee of MPs accused the UK Statistics Authority, which runs the Office for National Statistics (ONS), of playing a game of "unaccountable musical chairs" and failing to address recurring problems with UK economic data.

The departure of Sir Robert Chote, the authority's chair, means all three top jobs (the other two are at the ONS) in UK statistics are vacant. Whoever fills them faces the unenviable task of tackling "deep-seated" cultural problems at the ONS, as well as yawning gaps in the data it produces.

Until then, major institutions are shooting largely in the dark, including the Bank of England, which relies on ONS data - especially its critical labour force survey to make decisions about setting interest rates. It's also used by businesses to inform strategy and by the Treasury, which bases economic policy on inflation, growth and productivity figures, such as its findings this week that the economy contracted by 0.1% in May.