Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have considered replacing the census with in-depth sampling in the light of ongoing issues at the Office for National Statistics.

On 15 July 2025 HM Government confirmed its commitment to hold a mandatory, questionnaire based census in England and Wales in 2031. The Scottish Government and Northern Ireland Executive have confirmed their commitment to hold tradition censuses in their nations at the same time.

HM Government reached this decision after the UK Statistics Authority conducted extensive research and consultation into alternative options and concluded that a traditional census best met the needs of the UK’s government, local authorities, businesses, charities and citizens. Their reasoning is set out in their detailed recommendation, which was also published on 15 July 2025.

The Government remains committed to delivering the census in 2031 and is working closely with the ONS to ensure the programme’s success.