Dear Ed
OSR review into the recent publication of labour market statistics using alternative data sources to the LFS
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) welcomes the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) review into the recent publication of labour market statistics using alternative data sources to the Labour Force Survey (LFS).
The report acknowledges that the ONS has responded quickly when the quality concerns around the LFS led to the results being suspended, and that alternative measures were developed at pace.
As the OSR notes, we are already taking steps to address the requirements of the report. On 2 November, we published an article setting out a comprehensive plan to address the current concerns and reintroduce LFS estimates.
Today we have also published an article explaining why we made the decision to suspend publishing the LFS and giving details of the methods used for the alternative measures introduced in October.
We will provide an update on the work to reintroduce the LFS in early December and, in parallel, we will continue to transition to the transformed LFS, scheduled for March 2024.
Yours sincerely
Alex Lambert, Director of Surveys
Darren Morgan, Director of Economic Statistics Production & Analysis