Head of 'Climategate' research unit admits he hid data - because it was 'standard practice'

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Head of 'Climategate' research unit admits he hid data - because it was 'standard practice'
By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 6:49 PM on 01st March 2010

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The scientist at the heart of the 'Climategate' row over global warming hid data 'because it was standard practice', it emerged today.
Professor Phil Jones, director of the University of East Anglia's prestigious climatic research unit, today admitted to MPs that the centre withheld raw station data about global temperatures from around the world.
The world-renowned research unit has been under fire since private emails, which sceptics claimed showed evidence of scientists manipulating climate data, were hacked from the university's server and posted online.
On the spot: Professor Phil Jones being grilled by the Science and Technology committee in the Commons today
Now, an independent probe is examining allegations stemming from the emails that scientists hid, manipulated or deleted data to exaggerate the case for man-made global warming.
Prof Jones today said it was not 'standard practice' in climate science to release data and methodology for scientific findings so that other scientists could check and challenge the research.
He also said the scientific journals which had published his papers had never asked to see it.
Appearing before the committee's hearing into the disclosure of data from the CRU alongside Prof Jones, the university's vice chancellor Prof Edward Acton said he had not seen any evidence of flaws in the overall science of climate change - but said he was planning this week to announce the chair of a second independent inquiry, which will look into the science produced at CRU.

Challenged about one email in which he tells a sceptic he does not want to give him data because it will be misused, Prof Jones admitted: 'I have obviously written some pretty awful emails'.

But Prof Jones insisted the scientific findings on climate change were robust and verifiable.

And he said 80 per cent of the raw data used to create a series of average global temperatures showing that the world was getting warmer, along with methodology from the Met Office - but not CRU - on how the average temperatures were calculated, had been released.
According to the University of East Anglia (UEA) much of the data could not have been released without the permission of the countries which generated the information - and that while the majority had now allowed the figures to be released, a handful had refused to let CRU publish it.

Prof Jones said a 'deluge' of Freedom of Information requests last July had prompted the unit - which has only three full time staff - to try and get more of the data released.

The circumstances surrounding the emails are also the subject of an inquiry commissioned by the university, and separately by Norfolk police


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