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| Australian Bureau of Statistics 2016 Census | |
|---|---|
| Name | 2016 Census of Population and Housing |
| Country | Australia |
| Authority | Australian Bureau of Statistics |
| Date | 9 August 2016 |
| Population counted | ~23.4 million |
| Previous | 2011 Census |
| Next | 2021 Census |
Australian Bureau of Statistics 2016 Census
The 2016 Census of Population and Housing was the national population count conducted on 9 August 2016 by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The operation followed previous enumerations such as the 2011 Census and preceded the 2021 Census, and was intended to provide data for entities including the Parliament of Australia, the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, and state and territory statistical agencies. The census intersected with public institutions like the High Court of Australia and advocacy organizations such as Amnesty International and the Australian Human Rights Commission.
Planning for the 2016 enumeration involved agencies such as the Australian Electoral Commission, the Department of Social Services, the Department of Health, the Department of Education and Training, and local councils including the City of Sydney and Brisbane City Council. Historical precedents included censuses administered during administrations of Prime Ministers Malcolm Turnbull, Tony Abbott, and Julia Gillard, and relied on archives similar to those held by the National Archives of Australia and the National Library of Australia. International comparators included the United States Census Bureau, Statistics Canada, the Office for National Statistics (United Kingdom), and Statistics New Zealand.
Execution relied on contracts with private-sector firms like IBM Australia, Telstra, and Australia Post, and coordination with emergency services such as New South Wales Police Force and Victoria Police for workforce deployment. Preparatory governance involved Cabinet deliberations, the Department of Finance, the Australian National Audit Office, and Senate Estimates hearings. Operational elements referenced logistical activities common to organizations like the Australian Defence Force for remote area access, the Royal Flying Doctor Service for outreach, and the National Health and Medical Research Council for question design on health topics.
Data collection emphasized online returns via systems developed by contractors and paper forms distributed through Australia Post and managed by the Australian Electoral Commission. The methodology drew on classification standards from the Australian Statistical Geography Standard, the International Organization for Standardization, and the United Nations Statistical Commission. Question design referenced instruments used by the World Health Organization, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and the International Labour Organization to classify occupation, ancestry, and household composition.
Public reaction spanned stakeholders such as the Australian Council of Social Service, the Real Estate Institute of Australia, the Australian Taxation Office, and media outlets including ABC, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian, and The Guardian. Participation rates varied across states like New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory, and the Northern Territory, and among communities represented by the Indigenous Australian Legal Services and peak bodies such as Reconciliation Australia. Voter registration patterns and census participation were discussed in forums including Parliament House and state legislatures.
Processing involved infrastructure monitored by the Australian National Audit Office and techniques similar to those used by Eurostat and the United States Census Bureau, including imputation, coverage assessment, and edit procedures. Quality assurance engaged academic partners from the Australian National University, the University of Melbourne, the University of Sydney, Monash University, and Curtin University, and consulted statisticians affiliated with the Royal Statistical Society and the International Association for Official Statistics. Confidentiality frameworks aligned with principles from the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner and international protocols such as those of the United Nations.
Released outputs provided statistics for local government areas, electorates, and Statistical Areas used by entities like Infrastructure Australia, the Productivity Commission, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, the Australian Institute of Family Studies, and the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics. The results informed planning by Sydney Trains, TransLink, Brisbane City Council, Melbourne Water, and the Department of Veterans' Affairs, and were cited in reports by the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Grattan Institute, and the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute.
Contentious topics invoked legal instruments including the Privacy Act administered by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, and litigation involving the Federal Court, the High Court of Australia, and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. Public controversies involved privacy concerns raised by advocacy groups such as Electronic Frontiers Australia and legal scrutiny reported in the Australian Financial Review, The Australian, and The Guardian. Contracting decisions, cyber security incidents, and data release policies prompted Senate Estimates investigations and reviews by the Australian National Audit Office and the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security.
Census data were applied by the Department of Human Services, Medicare, the National Disability Insurance Agency, and local planning authorities including City of Melbourne and City of Brisbane for service delivery, infrastructure planning, and electoral redistributions administered by the Australian Electoral Commission. Researchers at CSIRO, the ABS Board, academics from Griffith University, the University of Western Australia, and policy analysts at the Lowy Institute and the Australian Strategic Policy Institute used the outputs for demographic modelling, forecasting for the Treasury, and public policy assessments by agencies like the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.
Category:Australian censuses Category:2016 in Australia