THE government is considering scrapping the national census after more than 200 years because the population is now so mobile it cannot be counted accurately.

The Treasury will soon begin talks over replacing the survey, which requires answers from all of Britain’s 24m households.

Pressure for a replacement after a final census in 2011 comes in the wake of serious failings in the 2001 census. The information is used as the basis for government funding of local authorities, so mistakes in counting a population can have serious consequences for public services.

A spokesman for the Office for National Statistics, which administers the census, said a formal review would begin early next year.

“We need to look again at the options available for the period beyond 2011,” he said. “Some countries are moving to alternative models and some have not held a traditional census for decades. We will be considering what others are doing as part of this review.”

Whitehall critics of the census maintain that because people move house and region so frequently, the information collected is out of date almost as soon as it has been analysed.

In addition, an estimated 1m people went uncounted in 2001 because no forms were received from their households. There is a theoretical £1,000 fine for noncompliance, but few prosecutions were pressed.

Surges of immigration have also shown the shortcomings of the census. Last year Slough council in Berkshire complained it needed more government money to maintain services because of the influx of immigrants. But the census recorded that it had 12,400 fewer inhabitants than the council’s estimate of 130,000.

Critics are also concerned about possible mass noncompliance because of security fears sparked by the repeated loss of important personal data by government departments and the intrusive nature of questions.

Questions asked in 2001 covered everything from how members of a household travelled to work to the colour of their skin and whether they had a basement in their home. In 2011 a designated “head of household” will be required to fill in a booklet answering questions on matters such as sexual orientation.

At least half the countries in the European Union have already abandoned census surveys. America has reduced its nationwide censuses to a handful of questions about age, gender and household relationships.

Explore UK News

• Crime News

• Education News

• Health News

• Science News

• Scotland News

Times Recommends

• Tree stump 'shows image of Virgin Mary'
• BBC drops Strictly judge for younger model
• Trafalgar Square 'reduced to a spectacle'