Firth (pictured) is emeritus professor of statistics at the University of Warwick and has been at the university since 2003. He has been a fellow of the British Academy since 2008.

Before Warwick, Firth was professor of social statistics at the University of Oxford, and has also worked at the University of Southampton and the University of Texas in Austin.

Firth works on general theory and methods for research in broad areas of science, social science and public life, and is known for his work on election-night forecasting and exit polling, as well as statistical theory, methodology and computing.

Richardson said: “David Firth is a superb choice for the next president of the RSS. His contributions to social statistics have been outstanding and he has played an active role in the RSS over the years.”

Firth said: “I feel deeply honoured to have been chosen by the RSS to be its next president, and my aim will be to build upon the excellent work already done by Sylvia Richardson and her predecessors. 

“Principled data-analytic methods have never been so important. The society plays a global leadership role in promoting best practice and innovation, and I look forward to working with RSS members and staff to sustain and develop this leadership in the next few years.”