FOI reference: FOI-2023-1581
You asked
I am seeking statistics on drug misuse in London. Specifically, I wish for data which shows the numbers of drug-related deaths, as shown on death certificates, separated by London's boroughs.
I wish for the data to encompass the period 01/08/2023 to 01/11/2023 (dates are in days/months/year).
We said
Thank you for your request.
We are responsible for the production of mortality data for England and Wales, this is driven by information collected from the death certificate at death registration.
The information recorded on a death certificate allows us to identify if a death was drug related. We can also identify the individual's area of usual residence and where they died – this includes postcode, local authority, region and so on. We identify the geographic area by linking the deceased's postcode of usual residence, or postcode of place of death, to the National Statistics Postcode Lookup. All the geographic areas for which we can provide mortality statistics are available on our Open Geography Portal.
We hold the following analysis for Deaths related to drug poisoning in England and Wales: 2021 registrations. This includes data on drug deaths by local authority in England and Wales. Data for drug poisoning and drug misuse deaths by London borough for deaths registered over 1993 to 2021 are available in these tables.
Data for 2022 registrations will be released in December. Figures for 2023 will be made available in 2024.
As such, this information is exempt under Section 22(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA), 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.