Statistics NZ is seeking the official tick from the general public for its plan to in future move the census away from the the longstanding one-off survey and to instead compile it largely based on 'admin data' already collected by other government agencies.
After the disaster that was the 2018 census, with poor response rates - particularly among Maori and Pacific people - Stats NZ was forced to use 'admin data' to bolster the available information. Admin data includes such things as birth records, school enrollment information and tax information.
For the 2023 census Stats NZ purposely tailored the exercise to utilise both the traditional survey material and admin data - and redoubled efforts to get a better overall response. The full cost of it is over $300 million.
As Stats NZ's recently released Statutory Review of the 2023 census showed, while the response rate was better, at 88.3%, it still fell below the 90% target. The response rates of Maori and Pacific peoples likewise improved, but the Maori response rate was still well short of the 90% target at 76.7%, while the Pacific peoples' response rate was 79.9%.
Now Stats NZ is opening up its plans for conduct of the 2028 census and beyond for public consultation. This will close on June 18.
Stats NZ's plan is to use the admin data "supplemented by survey information and bespoke solutions".
“The data landscape is changing," Stats NZ chief executive Mark Sowden said.
"Traditional census collection models with a large-scale field workforce are becoming unsustainable in terms of the survey burden on people, the timeliness of delivering data and statistics, and the cost pressures associated with a full field enumeration census.
"There is an opportunity to modernise how we collect data and to continue to deliver value for money to the country.
“The people of Aotearoa New Zealand want more and new data that is relevant to their daily lives, and they want it faster. We need to make use of new technology and data sources if we’re going to meet the needs and expectations of Aotearoa New Zealand in a sustainable way,” Sowden said.
In the consultation document, Stats NZ says adopting the new approach means Stats NZ will prioritise using admin data sources to provide the data for the census. When admin data is not available or not high quality, it will collect the data using other means, such as surveying.
Stats NZ says countries like the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada, which have census approaches like New Zealand’s, are shifting towards incorporating more admin data into their census processes.
"Some are already using methods that Stats NZ is currently considering. For example, in late 2023, the United Kingdom completed consultation on moving from a 10-yearly census to a model that primarily uses admin data, complemented by survey data and a wider range of data sources."
Following public consultation and then an independent evaluation, the preferred approach for the next census will be presented to Cabinet for consideration later in the year.
Stats NZ says it will then focus on the detailed design of the new approach to census "in continued collaboration with key customers, partners and communities". There will also be a second round of public consultation, seeking more detailed feedback, in 2025.
17 Comments
First step to Governing by ideology alone, is to stop measuring things. Substitute their own "we reckons" for actual data. Then hoodwink all of us into believing it. Much like when they said that covid vaccines prevented hospitalisations, which turned out to be untrue when the number of unvaccinated was adjusted from the reported 3% to the actual number of 10%.
Also, if people didnt return a census form, how do you know that they were Maori? Maybe there arent as many Maori in NZ as the Govt thinks, maybe they have gone to Australia like everyone else, maybe they have been overestimating the number of Maori for years and thats why they never get a high response rate - the unresponsive simply don't exist.
Labour hopelessly compromised Stats independence a couple of years ago (& I've seen nothing from National to reinstate it?)
https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/129031126/new-law-could-undermine-confi…
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/471263/statistics-experts-fear-law-…
It could be inferred that stopping the official census removes the last obstacle to politicians and bureaucrats control of all the information they determine that we need to know.
There are other government datasets (e.g. health, education, electoral roll etc) that can be used to source your ethnicity and Māori descent information. Stats uses a model that compares and ranks data quality from multiple sources to confirm the most accurate answer.
I have an even more radical idea. Stop. Stop collecting our information and collating it for central planning. It encourages centralised rather than decentralised models of governance and administration. Your local and regional government already know where you live and what services you need, but why should anyone in the public sector need to know what religion I am? It seems nice that the government can say all these things about the population, but honestly it doesn't make much difference to the sewers whether I'm a Pacific Islander or an Asian, whether I'm straight or gay, or even what my income is. It just satisfies someone's curiosity itch, but frankly we train people not to reveal personally identifing information for their safety, but then require them to give it away tlo the government every time the census rolls around.
In others words we see performance as inverse to staff numbers. It is the CEO playbook of the century trotted out yet again. Don't forget to add in the words "synergy with other departments" and something something "new technology". Its what they do when they have someone completely clueless as to the objectives with no skills as leader. Almost as if they are merely there to pick up a pay check and then mentally checkout for 8 hours of the day, clipping their toenails and thinking about fishing. To be fair Stats NZ would probably be better off if the leadership were paid to go fishing instead. It would be cheaper and they could hire 5 guys in information security & analysis with the savings.
Next announcement you will see something something "AI" and that will be the last remaining thread of ethics and sanity leaving the building because expecting any analysis honesty & fault reduction from AI integration is like expecting the cows to fly north for winter. Ironically AI increases the costs of operation and just trying to train them to provide usable output is a fools game.
First question do you trust government departments with your data... I mean where do we start with the trust issues with any information stored with ANY govt dept. They all have had massive data breaches with most being caused directly BY THE STAFF THEY HIRED & LAX MANAGEMENT.
hmm lets see there was:
public kiosks with full network access to massive private MSD data that was unsecured
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/msd-shuts-winz-kiosks-after-lax-security-…
sharing of private and medical data across snapchat groups (also I am aware of doxing of private details in public forums by ACC of friends)
https://www.1news.co.nz/2021/10/27/acc-has-work-to-do-to-regain-trust-a…
yet another MSD data breach of those on job seekers residing by and tied to one office
https://www.thepress.co.nz/nz-news/350086869/msd-data-breach-affects-ne…
Health NZ allowing the leak of 12000 people's private medical information
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/509336/at-least-12-000-people-caugh…
Don't forget there is also Health NZ denying people access to their notes & ability to correct data about them and posting medical details to addresses completely unrelated to random strangers.
Then lets not get into the breaches at the IRD, we don't have all day to list them all.
You know there have been so many the cases all start merging together after a while... they have not gotten past one breach when there is another just around the corner for the same issues. It is like the staff in these departments cannot be trusted with any information stored in any format at all.
The privacy commission is about as useful as tits on a bull for resolving issues, taking complaints, helping mediate for correction of data and even toothless in providing a preventative deterrent. They might as well rename themselves "whoops we forgot about privacy & information security" instead.
It's a crying shame for so many reasons that those instances occurred. Mainly in my mind because 1./ it undermines faith in government entities, and this trust is the #1 thing any government needs to operate effectively and 2./ Because after each of these events, the level of bureaucracy and additional layers added to get anything done effectively doubles, making the agencies themselves less effective which again udermines trust.
Also that they add bureaucracy and not say information security specialists to secure the systems and a minimum level of infosec & ethics training in ALL their staff. Such as do not take private data and sharing it amongst friends for a laugh, not taking private data and posting it to unrelated addresses.
A sort of stop, think & listen.
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