MPs will be debating Bill C-626 that proposes to amend the Statistics Act in order to reinstate the long-form census and expand the authority of the Chief Statistician of Canada.
Statistics Canada produces data that are used by all levels of government, community groups and businesses to make smart decisions.
In 2011, the government decided to scrap the mandatory long-form census and replace it with the voluntary National Household Survey (NHS). This new voluntary survey produces data that are unreliable and even unusable; and it actually costs more to implement than the longform census. Canadians are paying more for less useful information.
Bill C-626, a private member’s bill introduced by MP Ted Hsu, proposes to bring back the mandatory long-form census so that the detailed demographic data required to make smart policy decisions can be collected accurately and reliably.
We need to take action now to support the development of evidence-based policies that benefit all Canadians. Bill C-626 gives us a critical opportunity to raise this important issue again.
Please take a moment to tell your MP that you support bringing back the long-form census before they debate Bill C-626 today! You can send a message to your MP and the party leaders here: https://evidencefordemocracy.ca/census.
