Petition to reduce the UK census release from 100 years to 70 years
January 23, 2007
Genealogists wanting access to UK census records have a 100-year waiting period. We recently wrote about the early release of the 1911 census.
Now Downing Street is encouraging UK residents/citizens to sign an e-petition to reduce the classified period for census data from 100 years to 70 years. They wrote:
This would allow census information from 1911, 1921 and 1931 to be used by the general public researching their family history in the absense (or failing memories) of their elderly relatives. Birth, Marriage and Death information is already available so why is information about where people lived hidden.
To date, just over 9,000 electronic signatures have been collected. The deadline to sign up is March 8, 2007. Visit the petition at http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/CensusInfoFreed/
Posted by Geoff Rasmussen in News & Views | Permalink
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Comments (9)
This news item is slightly misleading. It is NOT Downing Street that has initiated the petition. The initiator has used a facility provided by Downing Street, in order to create the petition. This is NOT the UK government canvassing support for the early release of the 1911 census data. In fact, the government will, in all likelihood, ignore the petition.
Posted by: Mike Fry | January 23, 2007 at 03:50 PM
Please reduce census from 100 years to 70 years for public viewing.
Thank you,
Keith Arnold
Posted by: Keith Arnold | January 23, 2007 at 05:26 PM
I would dearly like to see the 1911,1921 and 1931 Census information. It would be most useful in my researches. However, people were told when they filled in their Census forms that they would be kept secret for 100 years, so I think that we have to respect that.
Posted by: Philip Heselton | January 26, 2007 at 01:49 AM
If you are able to please sign the petition, as at 26/1/2007 there are over 12,000 signatures. Ok so PERHAPS the uk government won't pay any attention, but if no one signs then they definitely won't!
Posted by: Jane Murray | January 26, 2007 at 08:35 AM
Of course this is also a bit theoretical as the 1931 Census was destroyed by bombing in WW2.
Posted by: David Webb | January 26, 2007 at 12:45 PM
I tried to sign the petition but only Uk Citizens are allowed to do this.
Posted by: Katherine Wilkinson | January 26, 2007 at 02:25 PM
Being able to view this information after 70years would certainly help people like me that live overseas, and who are only able to access the files online.
Posted by: Viv Sonntag | January 26, 2007 at 04:15 PM
May be partly theoretical as the 1931 Census returns have been destroyed by WW2 bombing
Posted by: David Webb | January 27, 2007 at 04:05 AM
I think when they promised to keep the 1911 Census private, times were a WHOLE lot different then and it was definitely more of a matter of life and death than it is now.
Posted by: Loretta McGinn | January 27, 2007 at 11:49 AM