The UK National Statistics Office and its Census White Paper has stirred a hornet’s nest by excluding a Sikh ethnic tick box, forcing a section of MPs, all UK-based gurdwaras and members of the Sikh community to kick off a countrywide campaign for addition of the tick box in the 2019 Census Order.
The Census White Paper — Help shape our future: The 2021 Census of population and housing in England and Wales — was published, setting out the UK Statistics Authority’s proposals for the 2021 Census for England and Wales. It has also been presented in Parliament.
The All-Party Parliamentary Groups for the British Sikhs (APPG), including MPs Preet Kaur Gill and Tanmanjit Singh Dhesi, heads of UK gurdwara management committees, the Sikh Federation of the UK and community leaders are spearheading a campaign against the “discrimination” against the Sikh community.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has allegedly ignored the views of over 250 MPs, who had extended their support to the Sikh ethnic tick box, and the support of 112 UK gurdwaras representing the Sikh sangat of over 4.7 lakh.
According to APPG, the White Paper states, “The ONS received information from a survey of gurdwaras enquiring about acceptance of a Sikh ethnic group tick box which showed high acceptance for inclusion.”
What has irked the APPG and other Sikh organisations was that despite Sikhs being legally recognised ethnic group for over 35 years in the UK, the ONS had allegedly issued specific guidance about 20 years ago to over 40,000 public bodies to not collect information about Sikhs to ensure their fair treatment and help bring an end to racial discrimination of Sikhs.
“The ONS, with its latest proposals in the White Paper, has now opened itself up to legal action and a claim of institutionalising discrimination against the Sikhs,” the APPG members alleged, adding that “long overdue” change in the ethnic group census categories will compel over 40,000 public bodies to explicitly address the specific needs of the Sikhs.
The Sikh Federation, UK, has alleged that over the past 12 months, the ONS approach had become “secretive” and focused on finding reasons not to grant Sikhs an ethnic tick box. However, these are proposals of the ONS and the final decision on the Census questions rested with Parliament.
“Gurdwaras, Sikh organisations and the community are resourceful and will work with the APPG during its year-long campaign. We are confident that we can secure the support of up to 350 MPs from across the political spectrum, including, ministers and shadow ministers, to back the Sikh community and we will be successful in securing an amendment to the Census Order when it is presented in Parliament in autumn 2019,” said Bhai Amrik Singh of the Sikh Federation.