26 August 2006
Same-Sex
Marriages To Be Counted in Census
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has
confirmed that
legal same-sex marriages
will be counted in this year’s Census.
Paul Williams, Head of
Census, had previously given “in principle” support
to the counting of same-sex marriages performed in
countries where same-sex marriage is legal, in the
wake of a sit-in protest at the ABS Sydney office by
Australian Marriage Equality (AME) convener Peter
Furness and his husband Theo Phillip.
However in a subsequent letter to AME, Williams has
upgraded his “in principle” commitment to a
confirmation that the ABS will indeed provide a
count of all same-sex marriages indicated in this
year's census.
Williams said that as
this was the first census at which Australians could
have entered into legal same-sex marriages, given
overseas reforms, the publishing of such data would
be of historical interest.
The Census head said, “There were doubts about the
logistics of counting these same-sex marriages,
given that there was no specific question in the
census on same-sex marriage. However we have
determined that it will be possible by
cross-checking responses to the gender question,
with responses that indicated the husband/wife box.”
AME spokesperson Sharon
Dane welcomed the decision. “I congratulate the ABS
for its decision. Australians in same-sex marriages
deserve to be counted just like Australians in
opposite-sex marriages,” she said. “Just because the
Prime Minister doesn’t approve of them doesn’t mean
they don’t exist.”
Furness said, “I believe it was felt that the
non-collection of such data in this census would, in
the not-too-distant future, reflect poorly on the
Bureau and those involved.”
While happy with the ABS decision, the AME
acknowledged that as the move was announced some
time after the census had been conducted, the final
count of people in same-sex marriages would be
inaccurate, as many married same-sex couples would
have marked “de facto” on their forms.
