FOI reference: FOI-2024-1832
You asked
I am writing to request the following data for the 2022/23 fiscal year. I would like to request any available data related to the nature of crime: burglary dataset from the Crime Survey for England and Wales, for the 2022/23 fiscal year.
Specifically, we would like to request all data on the following for the 2022/23 fiscal year:
- Items stolen in incidents of domestic burglary in a dwelling with entry Items stolen in incidents of domestic burglary in a non-connected building to a dwelling with entry
- Cost of stolen items in incidents of domestic burglary with entry
- Cost of stolen items in incidents of domestic burglary in a non-connected building to a dwelling with entry
We said
Thank you for your request.
The information you have requested for the year ending March 2023 will be published in our Nature of crime: burglary tables on the 3 April 2024. The Nature of crime: burglary tables were last published on the 3 September 2020 covering years up to the year ending March 2020.
As such, the information you have requested is considered exempt under Section 22(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, whereby information is exempt from release if there is a view to publish the information in the future. As a central government department and producer of official statistics, we need to have the freedom to be able to determine our own publication timetables. This is to allow us to deal with the necessary preparation, administration, and context of publications. It would be unreasonable to consider disclosure when to do so would undermine our functions.
This exemption is subject to a public interest test. We recognise the desirability of information being freely available and this is considered by ONS when publication schedules are set in accordance with the Code of Practice for Statistics. The need for timely data must be balanced against the practicalities of applying statistical skill and judgement to produce the high quality, assured data needed to inform decision-making. If this balance is incorrectly applied, then we run the risk of decisions being based on inaccurate data which is arguably not in the public interest. This will have an impact on public trust in official statistics in a time when accuracy of official statistics is more important to the public than ever before.