Access to the 1921 Census

[coombs]

I was mistaken into believing that the 1921 census would be released in January 2022. But you say their will be no release date anyway until we have a change in the law?

[coombs]

I have added a posting to the new hmg Your Freedom site

http://tinyurl.com/2vju6b9

If you want access to the 1921 census please visit and add your vote there
Your vote is important please use it
Cheers
Guy

    would you be the same Guy Etchells who rubbished petitions on the Number 10 website as doing more harm than good ? A tad hypocritical of you to now start a petition on a similar website

Yet you accuse him of trolling??? Cop out.

[Windsor87]

Not now, not in 100 years, not in 1000 years, never.

Is that true or are you just using scare tactics to get us to act?

In Scotland they have announced that the 1911 Census will be released on the first working day of 2012. They seem to have made it clear up here that there is this 100 year rule.
So what law is preventing them from announcing in say 2017 that the 1921 Census will be released on the first working day of 2022 (and the same for the 1931 Scottish census in 2032)? Are the rules different for Scotland?

Windsor87

[Guy Etchells]

Not now, not in 100 years, not in 1000 years, never.

Is that true or are you just using scare tactics to get us to act?

In Scotland they have announced that the 1911 Census will be released on the first working day of 2012. They seem to have made it clear up here that there is this 100 year rule.
So what law is preventing them from announcing in say 2017 that the 1921 Census will be released on the first working day of 2022 (and the same for the 1931 Scottish census in 2032)? Are the rules different for Scotland?

Windsor87

To take the point about Scotland first, since devolution the Scottish system and the England & Wales system come under separate laws.

I don't use scare tactics.

I have given a link to transcripts of the legislation, anyone who does not believe what I have written can read it for themselves.
http://tinyurl.com/6pnmbf
The relevant section in the Census Act 1920 being-

“8-(2) If any person-
(a) being a person employed in taking a census, without lawful authority publishes or communicates to any person otherwise than in the ordinary course of such employment any information acquired by him in the course of his employment ; or
(b) having possession of any information which to his knowledge has been disclosed in contravention of this Act, publishes or communicates that information to any other person ;
he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall on conviction be liable to imprisonment with or without hard labour for a term not exceeding two years or to a fine, or to both such imprisonment and fine.”

That section has been amended by the Census (Confidentiality) Act 1991, a short Act which needs to be read in full but includes the section –
1 “(2) If the Registrar-General for England and Wales or the Registrar-General for Scotland (“the Registrars”) or any person who is—
(a) under the control of either of the Registrars; or
(b) a supplier of any services to either of them,
discloses any personal census information to another person, without lawful authority, he shall be guilty of an offence.
(3) If any person discloses to another person any personal census information which he knows has been disclosed in contravention of this Act, he shall be guilty of an offence.”

As you can see there is no time limit on the closure of the data.

There has to be a change in law to allow for the census to be released.
Even the ONS agree the 100 year rule is non-statutory.
Non-statutory means it is not backed by the authority of law.
Cheers
Guy

[DomesticGoddess]

The 100 year rule is in place because of promises made at the time of the census,  we do not have to right to dishonour this promise for our own selfish curiosity

If we continually tamper with this ruling to get information out into the public domain earlier, we are damaging our integrity.  It is a slippery slope.

I am more than happy to wait for the release at the right time.

[nigelp]

The 100 year rule is in place because of promises made at the time of the census,  we do not have to right to dishonour this promise for our own selfish curiosity

Welcome to Rootschat.

Have you read the earlier posts in this thread and the relevant legislation?

There was no 100 year rule when the 1921 Census was undertaken. Additionally, as the legislation now stands (as a result of the Census (Confidentiality) Act 1991) it is not possible for the 1921 and subsequent censuses to be released at any date in the future. It has only been stated that censuses will be released in 100 years.

Nigel

[DomesticGoddess]

Thank you for your welcome.  However I base my post on the following which I should have explained in the original:-

Accessing the 1921 Census .... when will the 1921 Census be released?
The ruling by the Information Commissioner that resulted in the 1911 census being opened early does not apply to the 1921 census because, unlike the 1911 census, the 1921 census was conducted under the 1920 Census Act, which is still in force and which contains a statutory prohibition on disclosure.

The stated government position from the ONS is "its intention to release the entirety of the 1921 census returns in 2022, in accordance with the non-statutory '100 year rule' which was adopted to reflect this undertaking of confidentiality".

http://www.ffhs.org.uk/news/news061213.php

Please note that Government policy is that the 1921 and subsequent censuses should remain closed for 100 years. Unlike the 1911 census, the 1921 census was conducted under the 1920 Census Act, which is still in force and which contains a statutory prohibition on disclosure. This means that if any Freedom Of Information Act (FOI) requests are received for the 1921 census, the exemption found in S44 of the FOI Act will be invoked to maintain census confidentiality. (The 1921 census is not held by TNA and remains, like all subsequent censuses, in the custody of the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

[nigelp]

It is agreed that is the stated (or at least the last) government policy to release censuses in 100 years. This is a statement of intent and without legislative basis.

The point is that there was no 100 year rule when the 1921 census was undertaken and the Census (Confidentiality) Act 1991 (which retrospectively amended the 1920 Census Act) does not currently allow for the 1921 or subsequent censuses to be released in 100 years, 150 years, 200 years or at any other date in the future.

Since there was no promise of confidentiality for 100 years in 1921 and a 100 year rule has no legislative basis the question arises as to why the census should be kept confidential for 100 years? The 1930 US federal census has, for example, been released. BMD records and electoral registers for England and Wales aren't confidential for 100 years.

Nigel
 

[DomesticGoddess]

I feel that the census records should not be released prior to 2022.  My Aunt is still living in the house she was born and will appear for the first time on the 1921 census record. 

Up to date BMD are available online today which to be perfectly honest about I personally wish they were not unless permission had been sort from the individual as this in itself controvenes privacy.

Just because we can,does not necessary mean that we should.  Who is to say that the selfish curiosity of the few should outway the privacy of the majority?