RSS demands ‘full review’ of government’s use of health statistics One year on from their Covid-19 action plan, ministers need to start learning lessons, says Royal Statistical Society The charity Full Fact has said there is evidence health secretary Matt Hancock designed some targets retrospectively in a bid to show the government achieving Covid-19 related goals .Photo: Dan Kitwood/REUTERS/Alamy Stock Photo 09 Mar 2021 Ministers need to conduct a full review of the way health statistics are compiled and fix the “fragmented and under-resourced system” exposed by the coronavirus pandemic, the Royal Statistical Society has said. The professional body said that while statistics have been a crucial resource in the government's Covid-19 response, the experience of the past 12 months has highlighted the need to invest in “proper data infrastructure” that will allow the nation to cope better with future crises.