New survey evidence: census religion question 'fatally flawed'

21 March 2011

A new poll commissioned by the British Humanist Association (BHA) has provided fresh evidence that the census question is fatally flawed for its intended purpose of planning public services.

When asked the census question 'What is your religion?', 61% of people in England and Wales ticked a religious box (53.48% Christian and 7.22% other) while 39% ticked 'No religion'.

But when asked 'Are you religious?' only 29% of the same people said 'Yes' while 65% said 'No', meaning over half of those whom the census would count as having a religion said they were not religious.

Even more revealingly, less than half (48%) of those who ticked 'Christian' said they believed that Jesus Christ was a real person who died and came back to life and was the son of God.

Asked when they had last attended a place of worship for religious reasons, most people in England and Wales (63%) had not attended in the past year, 43% of people last attended over a year ago and 20% of people had never attended. Only 9% of people had attended a place of worship within the last week.

In a separate poll in Scotland, commissioned by the Humanist Society of Scotland (HSS), when asked the Scottish census question, 'What religion, religious denomination or body do you belong to?' 42% of the adult population in Scotland said 'None'.

But when asked 'Are you religious?' 56% of the same Scots said they were not and only 35% said they were.

Andrew Copson, BHA Chief Executive, commented, 'Most people in the UK now say they're not religious. In England and Wales, half the people who say they are Christian when asked the census question do not believe that Jesus Christ was the son of God, rose from the dead, and was a real person. Over half of those who tick a religious box on the census question have not been to a place of worship in over a year and asked "Are you religious?", say they are not.

'This poll is further evidence for a key message of The Census Campaign – that the data produced by the census, used by local and national government as if it indicates religious belief and belonging, is in fact highly misleading. We urge people who do not want to give continuing or even greater importance to unshared religions in our public life to tick "No Religion" in the census.'

Juliet Wilson, convener of the HSS, commented, 'These polls suggest that in the Census, many more people will say they belong to a religion than is the case. The government will use census data to justify maintaining faith schools while religious groups will use it to lobby for their own institutions, and promote greater separateness in our already dangerously divided society. Our survey shows that Scotland is already effectively a secular country. But the only way the Scottish Parliament will recognise this is if people remember to put a big tick in the "None" box.'

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