Watchdog rebukes Brown over use of statistics

UK Statistics Authority chair Sir Michael Scholar said the Prime Minister sought to draw links between data that was "not comparable" in a podcast which sparked protests from opposition parties last week. The ruling cast a shadow over Mr Brown's attempt to position Labour as the party of fairness and responsibility on immigration, in a speech in which he warned against election "scaremongering" about numbers of foreigners coming to Britain.

In a letter to the PM, Sir Michael pointed to two errors in the Downing Street internet broadcast.

Mr Brown had claimed net inward migration – the number of arrivals minus those leaving – fell from 237,000 in 2007 to 163,000 in 2008 and 147,000 last year, but Sir Michael said the correct figure for 2007 was 233,000. More seriously, he said the 147,000 figure used by Mr Brown was wrong because it is taken from a different data set which has not yet been adjusted.

Mr Brown corrected his error in yesterday's speech, without drawing attention to the original inaccuracy.

In his letter to the PM, Sir Michael said he hoped all parties would be "careful in their use of statistics" during the election.

Shadow home secretary Chris Grayling said Mr Brown was turning into "a serial offender in misleading the British people".

"He gave false information to the Chilcot Inquiry, his advertising campaign about policing was banned, and now he has given an inaccurate picture of his record on immigration," claimed Mr Grayling.

"Britain should expect better from its Prime Minister. No wonder we need change."

In his speech in east London, the Prime Minister promised that a re-elected Labour administration would deliver "fair and controlled" migration through its points-based system, while denouncing Conservative plans for an annual cap on incomers as "arbitrary and unworkable".

MPs return to Westminster on Tuesday next week, when Mr Brown is expected to call an election for May 6.