In Spring this year the National Statistics Board held a seminar on the Future of how Censuses are conducted in Ireland. Census 2022 was the twenty-sixth census conducted in Ireland since 1841. Conducting the Census has been a serious logistical operation, it requires the printing, distribution and collection of almost two million forms, the subsequent analysis and publication of the data under eight profiles. Amongst the challenges noted were non-response continues to grow, particularly in relatively deprived areas; happens only every five years; smaller population cohorts; recruiting staff to undertake this work is getting more difficult. In Census 2022 a new smartphone app was introduced to collate this data, and amongst the planned changes for Census 2027 will be an online response option.
Good data is critical for policy making and implementation to address the social, economic and environmental issues facing Ireland in an appropriate and timely manner, in a way that is truly inclusive and equitable.
In between the five year Census the Central Statistics Office (CSO) relies on administrative data to assess, for example, population estimates, now referred to as IPEADS (Irish Population Estimates from Administrative Data Sources). Some of the statistics collected on a more regular basis, for example, the Labour Force Survey, are adjusted when the latest Census has been analysed and published.
In 2026 a new EU Regulation, European Statistics on Populations (ESOP) is expected to come into force which will present considerable challenges, as the level of data required is similar to that collected through the Census. Amongst the proposals to address this issue are IPEADS and a new Irish Community Survey, which would be a large scale household survey, building on work undertaken in the USA.
The IPEADS variables that are available do not cover all of the equality grounds including disability; religion; race (nationality would be an IPEADS variable but not ethnicity); membership of the Traveller community; and sexual orientation. However, from an employment / unemployment perspective the IPEADS variables would include these variables through Principal Economic Status data.
The design and roll-out of an Irish Community Survey may address some of the data gaps that present serious challenges to the development of inclusive and equitable policy making, implementation and meaningful evaluation. However, the development of such a Survey would have to be co-designed with the people who would be expected to take part in it. If it is indeed to be a community survey, then respondents would need to feel a sense of ownership of it, see it as a valuable tool for Ireland’s social and economic development.
In Issue 57 of the INOU’s e-bulletin we highlighted some key statistics that are not readily available outside of the Census data, unless very specific and in depth research work is undertaken. The article is available at https://www.inou.ie/analysis/e-bulletin/2023/12/08/census-2022-key-statistics/