Office for National Statistics boss Darren Tierney has written to the head of the BBC to complain about the representation of ONS field interviewers in a recent episode of Industry, a financial thriller about city traders.
In episode three of the new fourth season, which was broadcast on 25 January, two characters falsely impersonate ONS survey interviewers on someone’s doorstep to gain access into the house, introducing themselves as being from the "Office of National Statistics".
Tierney, who joined the ONS as permanent secretary in August, said the episode had “caused worry” among staff.
In the letter, sent to BBC director general Tim Davie earlier this month, he said: “I am writing following a recent episode of one of the BBC’s television programmes ‘Industry’, in which characters gained entry to a household by impersonating interviewers from the Office for National Statistics.
“While I fully appreciate the creative freedom that drama affords, and that it’s a well-received series rooted in various excesses, this particular storyline has nevertheless caused worry among our interviewers.
“Our survey interviewers carry out essential work in homes and neighbourhoods across the country. They do so with dedication, professionalism, and often under challenging conditions. Their ability to perform this work safely depends on a foundation of trust: trust that they are who they say they are, trust in the integrity of their purpose, and trust that engaging with them is in the public interest.
“Depictions suggesting that posing as an ONS interviewer is a plausible tactic for criminal activity, even within fiction, risk undermining this delicate relationship at a time when it is already under strain. In practice, there would of course be a number of safeguards to reassure members of the public.”
Tierney added that ONS relies on high-quality survey responses to build an accurate and timely picture of life in the UK and noted that response rates “have been challenged by a range of external factors, and our interviewer teams work tirelessly to maintain engagement despite them”.
The ONS perm sec said he was bringing the matter to Davie’s attention “not in a spirit of criticism, but out of concern for the unintended effect of such portrayals”.
“Our staff take great pride in serving the public, and many have expressed distress that their work, and the trust placed in them, may be inadvertently compromised,” he said.
“We would value the opportunity to engage with your teams to discuss ways to ensure that audiences remain confident about what to expect from a genuine ONS visit. Our interviewers would welcome the BBC looking at the challenging and vital work they do.”
Reprioritisation to ensure stats 'deliver most value'
In a separate letter to UK Statistics Authority interim chair Penny Young, Tierney set out recent steps the ONS has taken to reprioritise as part of a plan to turn around its performance following a damning review last year on failings at the organisation.
Tierney said the ONS has been working with a range of organisations across health, subnational and areas of economic statistics relevant to government departments to ensure ONS statistics are focused "where they deliver most value, and where we are uniquely placed to deliver".
"In doing this we engaged with users so that reductions [in survey activity] in the near term have as little impact as possible in the context of other available data sources," he added.
The changes will see a reduction in the ONS's statistical outputs while it focuses on recovery and investing in the quality of its core economic statistics. The letter sets out that this includes no longer running the Health Survey for England and the Mental Health of Children and Young People Survey; pausing quarterly greenhouse gas emission (residence basis) statistics; and scaling back activity related to wellbeing statistics.
Tierney said the ONS would, in response to user feedback, continue to run the Annual Population Survey, which reflects ONS outputs at the local and regional level. However, in the short term and given practical limits on field interview resources, he said there will be a reduction in the survey boost in England which supports APS data.