Statistics council suggests compromise to end census battle

The national body that advises Statistics Canada and the chief statistician called Monday for the restoration of the long-form census, along with the removal of the threat of jail time for not completing it and reform of the planning process for the next census, in 2016.

The National Statistics Council, a 40-member panel of prominent analysts and researchers from across Canada, issued a statement expressing concern about the government’s plans to make the mandatory long-form census a voluntary survey, urging a series of reforms and compromises instead.

"We believe that the changes will harm the integrity and quality of the Canadian statistical system," Ian McKinnon, chair of the council, said of the Conservative government’s plans. "At the same time, the council recognizes that concerns about intrusiveness and confidentiality should be addressed."

The council believes Canadians "should not be overburdened by intrusive demands for unnecessary information," the statement said, but loss of the mandatory long-form data will leave a "serious gap" in the snapshot of Canadian society and its portrait of change over time. There are just a few weeks left to make changes to either the long-form census or the voluntary National Household Survey proposed to replace it if the census is to go ahead as planned in May 2011, the council said, but discussion of the issue has ground to halt.

"Debate over the future course of the census has become heated without moving toward a resolution that meets both concerns about privacy and intrusiveness, as well as the need to maintain the quality of Canada’s statistical system," McKinnon wrote.

Since the timeframe before the 2011 census is tight – the agency begins preparing for the next census as soon as the previous one is completed – the council recommends next year’s census go ahead as initially planned, with the mandatory long form sent to 20 per cent of households.

Looking ahead to 2016, the council recommends the Statistics Act be re-written to remove the threat of jail time for not filling out census forms, noting that other countries conduct successful census counts without that potential punishment. However, they recommend that jail be used as a punishment for "those who wilfully break confidentiality provisions" for census data.

As part of the planning process for the 2016 census, each question on the census questionnaires should be reviewed to ensure it meets a strict set of criteria, the council says. Questions should only ask information that is required by legislation or cabinet direction, and necessary for users of small-area neighbourhood data for which there is no other source of information. Each question should contribute to establishing benchmarks for difficult-to-reach groups, providing data on important national issues such as the economic integration of new immigrants and creating a base for other surveys of small or dispersed groups such as urban aboriginals or people with health conditions that limit their activity.

Finally, the council recommends that the series of questions on household activities on the current long form, which asks how much time people spend caring for children or seniors and doing housework, should be removed because "it was the question that occasioned the largest number of objections" on privacy grounds, and it doesn’t meet the other criteria for questions that should be included.

"The National Statistics Council believes that these steps, taken together, can respect the valid concerns voiced by Canadians about privacy and intrusiveness, while ensuring that the vital information that currently flows from the long-form census can be maintained and continues to serve Canadians’ needs," McKinnon concluded in the statement.