HL Deb 26 March 2001 vol 624 cc6-7WA
Lord Evans of Temple Guiting

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What arrangements have been made to review the procedures for safeguarding the security and confidentiality of information to be collected in the 2001 Census in England and Wales. [HL1386]

Lord McIntosh of Haringey

The Government's White Paper on the 2001 Census, published in March 1999, gave assurances that the well-established traditions of maintaining confidentiality of information collected in the census would be upheld for the 2001 Census, and that the Census Offices would undertake reviews of the confidentiality and security arrangements for the 2001 Census and would publish the outcome of such reviews before the census.

Independent reviews of the physical security arrangements for processing the 2001 Census information and the measures to protect the statistical confidentiality of the data were undertaken last year. The outcome of the reviews, including a joint statement from the Registrars General for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, is being published today by the Office for National Statistics, the General Register Office for Scotland and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency.

The Government are satisfied that the measures and procedures in place will protect the security and confidentiality of the 2001 Census.

The report is available via the National Statistics website (www.statistics.co.uk). Paper copies will be available on request to ONS, and copies of the report have been deposited in the Libraries of both Houses.