Stop the census presses! This just in from the National Statistics Council...

The National Statistics Council (that just rolls off the tongue now, doesn't it?) has issued a news release today calling for the reinstatement of the mandatory long-form census in 2011.

I know, I know, that's hardly shocking seeing as the NSC is made up of, well, statisticians and others who have already decried the government's move to replace the long-form with a voluntary National Household Survey. People such as economist Don Drummond, former Statistics Canada Chief Statistician Ivan Fellegi, William Robson of the C.D. Howe Institute as well as dozens of professors and academics from universities across the country. (See here for a link to what the Council is about.)

But while the headline might not be that surprising, the NSC is also suggesting changes to the 2016 long-form census, including examining the form question by question, to see if each question meets a list of tests (that the Council lays out) to ensure the question is really necessary. The NSC also recommends taking the "go to jail" provision out of the Statistics Act as a punishment for not filling the census out (but the fines would stay.)

The Council also takes aim at one set of questions in particular, calling for the removal of the household activities series of questions, which the statement says seems to raise the most objections each time the census rolls out. Those are the questions asking about hours of unpaid housework/yardwork and the caring for children or elderly without pay. While those questions seem contentious to some, on the flip side, I can see some people not at all pleased with the elimination of such illuminating queries. But according to the NSC, those questions don't meet their list of tests (see below for that list).

The Council argues it's too late to have the kind of thorough and public review needed to make those changes for the 2011 census, which is why it is arguing for the status quo until 2016. We'll likely get a sense of whether the government sees this as a compromise or a no-go at Tuesday's special reconvening of the Industry Committee.
NSC.press.release.en
NSC Statement En