Dear Ed,
Confirmation of accredited official statistics status: Northern Ireland tourism statistics covering trips, nights and associated expenditure
Thank you for your letter dated 28th October 2025, which set out the outcome of the Review of compliance with the Code of Practice for Statistics for Northern Ireland Tourism statistics.
Myself and the team are delighted that the review has found that Northern Ireland tourism statistics, covering trips, nights and associated expenditure, comply with the standards of Trustworthiness, Quality and Value in the Code of Practice for Statistics and should be reinstated as accredited official statistics.
I am extremely grateful for all the work that our small team at NISRA have delivered to re-establish the NI tourism statistics series since the COVID 19 pandemic disrupted the broader collection of tourism data in Northern Ireland. I am also grateful to:
- colleagues in NISRA’s Central Survey Unit who, along with our experienced field force, look after the logistics of our data collection operations;
- colleagues in CSO Ireland who provide Inbound Tourism statistics and Household Travel Survey data; and finally
- the general public who support us through the provision of their tourism related information – without their participation and co-operation none of this would be possible.
I wanted to put on record our appreciation for all of the work that you and your team at the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) put into the compliance review and for the professional manner that the team engaged with us here at NISRA, including attending a user engagement meeting in order to witness our communication practices first hand. At NISRA, we continue to value the independent perspective, insight and challenge that the OSR brings through its regulatory work.
The team will take encouragement from the insights provided in your review and will proactively address the three recommendations that you believe will strengthen the statistics further.
Yours sincerely,
Brian Green
Director of Economic Statistics, NISRA