Hon Maurice Williamson
Minister of Statistics
28 February 2013 Media Statement

Online saves time for 2013 Census

Statistics Minister Maurice Williamson says the level of online participation for the census has been strong.

As of today, more than 300,000 individual and dwelling forms had been submitted ahead of census day next Tuesday.

“While census is a snapshot of the country on March 5th, people can complete forms online ahead of time, particularly if they know what they are going to be doing on the day.

“The response has been great thus far and will soon surpass the 2006 overall total of 391,000 forms completed online.

“While Statistics New Zealand has a goal of 35 per cent (about two million forms) being completed via the internet this census, I’m hopeful it will be closer to 50 per cent. I encourage everyone to use this option, as it’s secure, quick and easy,” Mr Williamson says.

If an entire household completes its census forms online it’s unlikely a census collector will need to return to that home.

“Getting everybody in New Zealand to fill in their census forms is absolutely critical in making sure community groups, iwi, councils and businesses have access to the best possible information about the country.”

It also directly influences funding for areas such as health and transport.

Either online or on paper, all census information is kept confidential by Statistics NZ and can only be used for statistical purposes.

________________________________________

© Scoop Media

Arguably Reassuring: Inspector-General Finds GCSB "Arguably" Legal

Of the 88 individuals:

• 15 cases involving 22 individuals did not have any information intercepted by GCSB.

• another four cases involving five individuals were the subjects of a New Zealand Security Intelligence Service warrant and the GCSB assisted in the execution of the warrants. The Inspector-General is of the view that there were arguably no breaches and the law is unclear.

• the Bureau only provided technical assistance which did not involve interception of communications, involving three of the individuals, so no breach occurred.

• the remaining cases involved the collection of metadata, and the Inspector-General formed the view that there had arguably been no breach, noting once again that the law is unclear.
More>>