Scotland Census - Request paper copy to demonstrate your support for the importance of collecting factual data

[NonnyMouse1337]

The census takes place every ten years to capture meaningful data about the population in Scotland.
The results of the Census affect everyone because it is used to plan vital public services and inform investment in areas such as education, transport, health and social care.

Angus Robertson MSP, Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture, has said:

“Scotland’s Census is unique in asking the whole nation important questions that help us to better understand the future needs of our communities.

"The census helps the Scottish Government, Local Government and other service providers to plan services and make decisions about how public money will be spent on major services in our communities, including schools, roads and hospitals.

“It's essential we maximise participation and ensure that everyone is heard and their needs captured.”

Given the importance of the census, you would think it is crucial that the data gathered is accurate and factual.

Yet, as you might be aware, a recent court ruling declared that this should not be the case when it comes to filling in a person's sex. Since the Census Act - which was written in 1920 by the way - does not explicitly define sex or distinguish between sex and gender, it apparently means it's ok to answer the question based on how a person feels, irrespective of what is recorded on their birth certificate or Gender Recognition Certificate.

Many women and men disagree with this approach. A person's sex is a factual piece of information, like our age, and not something to be based on what we would like it to be.

The question on sex is mandatory.

There is a new question which is optional - it asks about a person's trans status. This is a good thing. We want to capture accurate numbers of how many trans people there are in Scotland, as there is no reliable data for this at the moment. Healthcare for trans people cannot be planned for properly if we don't know how many males and females are trans. However, since the question is optional, no one is obliged to answer it if they don't want to.

There is no logical reason for the sex question to be a matter of personal interpretation when there is already a question that captures a person's gender identity.

If you are also concerned with the way sex is being undermined in all kinds of areas of law and policy, then please request a paper copy of the census. Do not fill it in online.
A paper copy has sufficient space to answer the mandatory questions without breaching guidelines but still enables you to signal your disagreement. The online version will only allow you to select specific values and you can't add anything else.

More information will be provided soon by various women's rights groups on the exact wording to write in the census form. But in the meantime, please order the paper version and ask others to do the same.

twitter.com/ForwomenScot/status/1498259044494098435?s=20&t=Z9vHKzo5INWuJLRQlm0YiQ

@WouldBeGood

All the SNP have now taken pronouns off bios…

The Borg

Wonderful when you can pick and choose if your alleged 'beliefs' suit you or not. Utter shyster bastards. Trading in my daughter's personal safety for an ideology none of them had heard of a few years ago.

They can, every one of them, get to fuck and stay there.

If anyone else is still waiting for their paper copy?

I ordered my paper copy a few weeks ago, have had nothing, and just went online to request it again. It doesn't seem to register I'd already requested one, so you might want to do it again if you've been waiting a while.

Thanks, I'm also still waiting.
There are ads on Facebook urging us to complete the census return. The comments are quite funny. Lots of people are saying the questions are intrusive. At least I think that's what the "most bastards" comments imply. Retired people are complaining that they're being asked about previously holding supervisory positions. And lots of people are pointing out that these questions don't fit with the purpose of the census : forecasting future needs.

Oops that should say nosy bastards
It says a lot that my phone autocorrected nosy 😂

I requested a paper copy on March 1st and still not received it so requested again. Have had a reminder leaflet through the door every day this week

I've still not had my paper copy either. Was contemplating phoning the helpline if it still hasn't arrived tomorrow...

Bumping. Write BelieverInBiology without spaces to make sure it's all recorded.

I'm still waiting for my paper copy too. Apparently they've had higher than expected demand

My paper copy has now arrived. Looking forward to spending time filling it in at the weekend.

I’ve just requested my paper copy, thanks to this thread.

Paper copy arrived today

@WouldBeGood

Good, because if it’s true that you’re either Scottish or Other British on it that’s annoying me too!

This properly gave me the rage!!

I'm still waiting on my paper copy!

Me too !

The medical question is quite intrusive. This doesn’t appear on the English form. The two forms are really quite different.

Finally got mine yesterday and have filled it out. I found quite a lot of it intrusive. Why do the Government need my work name (rather than a category like Local Government), department name and actual address? If it's to do with how far you travel to work, couldn't the question have asked that specifically? Medical question quite intrusive as well.

I wasn't comfortable giving them the address of my place of work so i ticked the box with no fixed place - as I sometimes WFH - then you're not obliged to put in the address.

Am I missing something....I received my paper copy but I can't see anything in the document or loose papers that came with it relating to guidance on answering the sex question.

I was confused by that too! You have to go onto the website to find the guidance which isn't that helpful for anyone who doesn't have Internet access... though maybe they would send out a paper version if you asked which would take another 3 weeks to arrive

I agree that many of the questions are very intrusive, and I'm not sure what information they are trying to gather. Things like info on the most recent job, for those who are retired or currently not working. What good is that going to be for planning future services?! By definition, that's a job people aren't doing any more, so no need to "plan" around it! Similarly, DCs school. Why do they need the address, when "catchment denom/ non denom/ out of catchment/ private" should be enough? It just seems to be gathering quite intrusive personal information at risk of being breached given their previous success at keeping personal data confidential without any justification/ explanation why they want it.

There’s no option for part time students or those doing modular degrees with some pert time work alongside…

Thanks @ResilienceWanker glad it's not just me!
It really seems like an omission not to provide people who ask for a paper copy with all the information that those completing online would be pointed to, as the assumption ought to be that they don't have internet access and are therefore provided with everything they need in the paper pack! Or do they think that those filling it in in paper form won't need guidance on any of the questions. I also don't see the purpose of some of the questions.

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/parents-told-they-can-swap-toddlers-sex-in-scottish-census-5s7mqnnnw

Sorry I don’t have a share token, but this is crazy!

Today is Census Day!

Hopefully you will have received your paper copy by now, but if not, get in touch with the census helpline as soon as possible to order another copy. You can also fill it out online to avoid further delays.

Question 21 is the voluntary question on religion - write or type in BELIEVERINBIOLOGY in the space provided.

As a further protest, you can also send a letter to the National Records of Scotland.

In last year's England and Wales census, people were offered a draft letter they could put in with their paper census copy, lodging an objection to their data being held or processed as meaning anything other than their biological sex. The letter made use of rights to object to personal data being handled in particular ways, under the GDPR. The census is covered by the GDPR rules.

A similar version is now available for the current Scottish census. Whether the NRS will treat these letters as seriously as they should remains to be seen. But as a GDPR-related communication they should be legally obliged to respond.

Amend the letter to include your name, address and date, and include it with the census paper copy. It can also be sent separately, by anyone who has completed online. Make sure you keep a copy of the letter for yourself, just in case you don't get a reply and want to follow it up. A separate letter should be included for each household member who wants to object.

TEMPLATE LETTER

[Insert your address on the right hand side of the page]

Paul Lowe
Registrar General
National Records of Scotland

c/o Freepost SC2022

[insert date on the right hand side of the page]

Dear Mr Lowe,

CENSUS 2022: OBJECTION TO DATA PROCESSING

I am pleased that the NRS recognises that “the sex question provides vital information for organisations on national and local population statistics, and for long term analysis, as it has been asked since 1801. This question is also used for equality monitoring.”

I am therefore disappointed that the NRS has issued guidance on Question 3 (“sex”) which states that “If you are transgender the answer you give can be different from what is on your birth certificate. You do not need a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC).” In doing so, it has rejected the definition of sex used in the Equality Act and made census data incompatible with that. The Inner House of the Court of Session ruled on 18 February that sex under the Equality Act means “biological sex”.

I am therefore writing to you, as data controller for Scotland’s Census 2022 under the Data Protection Act 2018, to exercise my right to object under Article 21(1) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) to the information I have provided in response to Question 3 being processed as anything other than my sex registered at birth. This includes all recording, storing and reporting. My reason for raising this objection is that my biological sex was accurately registered at birth. It cannot be changed. I therefore do not want my response to be treated in any context as possibly representing a “sex” other than my sex registered at birth.

I am also exercising my right to obtain from you as data controller a restriction of processing under Article 18(1)(d) of the GDPR, which applies where the data subject “has objected to processing pursuant to Article 21(1) pending the verification whether the legitimate grounds of the controller override those of the data subject”. I am seeking this restriction only in relation to any processing of my response to Question 3 as anything other than my sex registered at birth. I understand that the NRS has one calendar month to respond to my objection. If it intends to override my objection it should let me know, explaining its decision and must demonstrate to me that it has legitimate grounds to do so. Please use the address at the top of this letter for your response.

Yours sincerely,

[SIGN AND PRINT FULL NAME HERE]

This was actually a LOT of fun. I got more incentive and sarcastic as I went through it. Everyone in my house is female now.

If you want to put British and are filling it in online, just tick ‘other’ then put British in the box. But yes, rubbish that you have to do that.