Press and politicians not trusted to present statistics honestly

Most people in Britain trust official statistics—they just don't trust the press or politicians to present them honestly, that is according to a report by NatCen Social Research.

Around 4 out of 5 of those who expressed an opinion said they trusted figures produced by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the UK's national statistics institution, when questioned for the British Social Attitudes survey.

Yet only 28% of those who gave an opinion had faith in the government to present official figures honestly when talking about its policies. And the majority (71%) would like to see an end to the current rules that allow government ministers and advisors to see official statistics 24 hours before they're officially released.

And the British public has even less faith in the press—just 19% of those giving an opinion to the survey trusted newspapers to present official figures honestly.

That lack of trust in those delivering the information seems to have tarnished the work of the ONS by association: of those who said that they didn't trust official statistics, the most common reason given was that the figures are misrepresented by politicians or the media.

That's why we're doing what we do. Please support our Crowdfunder campaign and help to ensure that voters get information we can trust this election.