Dear Minister Clement:
As a Municipal Planner, we know first-hand the importance of the mandatory long-form census questionnaire.
In the past, data from the long-form questionnaire have been used to inform program and policy decisions in our community. The data allow us to ensure that program investments - often with federal money - are targeted toward the populations who need them the most.
Moreover, comparing past data with more recent numbers allows us to see whether programs are working or whether adjustments need to be made, as well as shared municipal/federal and municipal/provincial programs, make a positive impact and provide the best return on investment.
Many of our departments depend on census data help create safe, healthy, ecologically responsible communities. When we want to involve communities with large immigrant populations in revitalizing rundown areas or enhance business areas we use information about language demographics to help do that work. When we want to provide efficient transportation options that reduce CO2 we use trip departure data. When we want to integrate land use and transportation we need to know how many people live within a walk-able distance of LRT stations.
As planners we understand the unsustainable cost of urban sprawl but are unable to communicate the cost without good census data. We use census data when we are determining what the priority neighbourhoods are to revitalize. This is vital so that we can take advantage of existing infrastructure. Many of our statutory plans dictate that we implement programs to leverage the efficiency of smart growth urban intensification and slow inefficient urban sprawl but the inability to get specific data will prevent benchmarking progress and decreases the value of our performance measurements. Goals that are not measured are seldom achieved.
I recognize that your government is proposing changes that would see the long-form questionnaire distributed to more homes across the country, but completing it becomes voluntary. The voluntary nature of the new form will compromise the quality of the data and will not accurately reflect the socio-economic or population diversity demographics that municipal governments use to shape their programs. By changing the form, long-term comparisons of census data which is vital to trend analysis and planning will no longer be possible.
I urge you and your government to reconsider the decision to eliminate the mandatory long-term census questionnaire in 2011 and beyond. The quality of municipal policies and programs depends on this data.
Sincerely,
Michael Brown
Planner
Labels: canada, census, debacle, fail, politics
