Being selected for a 'Census' activity can be like the reverse of winning the lottery: all pain and no gain. CLA often gets complaints about mandatory rules of the Australian Bureau of Statistics for their numerous types of surveys. Here Toni Walker wonders what are the odds of being picked twice in a decade? What do you think?

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Census 'randomness' doesn't make sense

I read your article about Census and, as much as it vexed me to have to participate, as you say it's not that intrusive due to the conditions it is held under. I however, was in the unfortunate position 10 years ago to "legally have to" participate in a survey whereby for eight weeks the bureau rapped on my door every week to enquire who was at the house. I live in a small Qld town and feel not only was this an invasion of privacy but of my civil liberty.

In the last few weeks I have had yet another visit by the bureau, this time to participate in a skills competency survey. This is where they enter your home and test your numeracy and literacy, which "legally" you are forced to do so. There is no civil liberty here and not even a valid explanation of how the apparent handful have been selected from my small town to make up the 14,000 nationwide.

It doesn't take much to work out that the bureau is not efficiently being random with those kind of percentages, does it? Wouldn't you think a small town out of the 2,500 plus may be chosen for any kind of survey once in every 50 years, not every 10 and absolutely not "randomly" picking the same person for both of these?

By the way, this does not make a person exempt from having to participate, apparently, and therefore they could have their civil liberty encroached upon "randomly" any time...and any amount of times!!

Toni Walker, Queensland