Economist Accidentally Reports on Migrant Stats: Immediately Backpedals

Today on Based Camp we discuss the shock people experienced when the Economist (of all outlets!) published data from UK Ministry of Justice records showing Afghan nationals to be convicted of sexual offenses at roughly seven times the rate of British nationals, with Middle East and North Africa groups at 3.6 times and Sub-Saharan Africa at 2.5 times. We examine the original and revised charts, similar patterns in Denmark, Norway, and the Netherlands, and the legal risks of discussing such statistics in the UK.

We also discuss how the Economist’s team handled population adjustments for age and sex, comparisons to raw conviction counts, reactions from online analysts, and what the data suggests about migration impacts across Europe, noting shifts in public discourse and political positions on immigration controls.

It’s rather amusing that the Economist decided to step in this arena at all. Is the Overton Window shifting? Let us know what you think in the comments!

Show Notes

Given that people in the UK are sent to jail for inciting racial hatred*, the internet is now truly shocked by a chart that The Economist used Ministry of Justice data standardised for age and sex to show Afghan nationals at roughly 7x the British conviction rate for sexual offenses, Middle East and North Africa at ~3.6x and sub-Saharan Africa at ~2.5x, with EU and East Asian groups below baseline

“I’m shocked that The Economist was willing to publish this!” wrote Cremieux

Andris K Berzins noted that “The Economist article this chart comes from (https://economist.com/britain/2026/10/25/do-immigrants-from-some-countries-commit-more-sex-crimes) tries to play down the discrepancy. But the data (shown on a linear rather than log scale as in the original article) is alarming indeed. The Economist’s conclusion, that in absolute terms the difference in sex crimes is not alarming, hides the fact that migration is a real issue and there is a clear impact. 🤷‍♂️”

The original original article makes it look more stark.

GuruAnaerobic showed the data in a different way; doesn’t look good with Alex commenting that ““British Nationals” is doing some heavy work on its own already”

Brian Chau swung in to correct the scale though African Farmer noted he “Should have used dicks instead of fatties.” (I am inclined to agree but Brian keeps it classy)

*For real:

* Lucy Connolly received a 31-month prison sentence in October 2024 after pleading guilty to inciting racial hatred. Her post called for mass deporta