Ministry of Justice fights court bid to release migrant crime data

The Ministry of Justice is facing accusations of a cover-up after refusing to publish data on crimes committed by migrants, with a Freedom of Information request now heading to court.

The request was made by Robert Bates, chief of the Centre for Migration Control, in summer 2025. He asked the department to provide figures for recent years on crimes committed by migrants, whether legal or illegal, broken down by nationality and offence type. The Ministry of Justice rejected the request. Bates appealed to the Information Commissioner's Office. The ICO ruled that the department should release the data, finding that it was not too expensive and that the information was already held. Normally, a government department would comply at that point.

Instead, the Ministry of Justice has committed to a more expensive court process. It argues that the interests and fundamental rights and freedoms of affected data subjects, meaning the migrants, outweigh the legitimate interests in disclosure. The next stage is likely to be a court hearing. Bates has requested that it be held in London in person. Writer and investigative journalist David Shipley said he would attend every hearing and report on it if the case goes ahead. He argued that the arguments filed in the case are strong and suggested the department might want to reconsider to avoid wasting public money.

The case has been framed by critics as a cover-up. Shipley said he believed the only plausible reason for withholding the data was that it would be destructive to arguments for mass migration. He said that if the figures showed migrants did not commit sexual or violent offences at a higher rate than British people, the government would release them quickly.

The issue has also prompted comparisons with Denmark, which publishes similar data. During a discussion of the case, Danish figures for sex crime convictions in 2025 were cited, showing that Iraqis, Afghans, Syrians, Somalis and Iranians were overrepresented compared with the native Danish population. Former Labour adviser Matthew Larzer rejected the cover-up claim, calling it a 'cock-up'. He said the refusal may be driven by cost and concern that releasing detailed figures could allow individuals to be identified, potentially leading to human rights challenges. He suggested a threshold of under 25 people before data is suppressed. Former Labour MP Lord John Cryer said it was convenient for the Ministry of Justice to hide behind an argument about victimising individuals, and pointed to Denmark's transparency. Former Conservative chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng also cited Denmark's approach and said it had raised concerns about young men from certain countries.