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Catholic World News News Feature

Next UK Census To Include Religious Question January 27, 2000

LONDON (CWNews.com) - Plans to include a compulsory question on religious affiliation in the United Kingdom's 2001 census have been welcomed by Britain's major faiths but condemned by the secularists.

If the scheme is adopted, the question will ask those filling in the census form to state their religion by ticking one choice from: "None, Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Jewish."

The Church of England and the Catholic Church have both welcomed the proposal and Churches Together in England (CTE), an inter-denominational body representing most mainstream Christian groups, said it was "very enthusiastic."

CTE's general secretary, the Rev. Bill Snelson, told the BBC: "We are positive about this, although we would have preferred a question which distinguished between the different Christian churches. That would have helped to plan denominational facilities like schools and hospices."

Snelson added: "There is now proof that religious affiliation and belief do affect people's social behavior, for example in areas like morbidity rates, and it's important for the census to recognize that. It will also help to ensure there is proper provision for different groups. At the moment all the evidence is anecdotal, and it shouldn't be."

Keith Porteous Wood of the National Secular Society expressed concern that the figures produced would not be realistic. "We are concerned at the possibility of much special provision to different communities on religious grounds," he said. "And we think the question may produce an inflated idea of the numbers of religious adherents. When people go to hospital, they often say they are Church of England, almost without thinking. The same thing could happen here."