Social Policy in Ontario

At a news conference on Tuesday, Treasury Board President Stockwell Day said he heard only three complaints about the government’s abolition of the long-form census questionnaire, suggesting that there’s no interest.

Mr. Day has evidently failed to notice the overwhelming opposition to the proposed changes. Following is a sample of organizations whose leaders or membership have taken a position on this important matter of public policy.

For:

Fraser Institute; National Citizens’ Coalition; Canadian Taxpayers Federation.

Against:

Canadian Federation of Independent Business; Information and Communications Technology Council; Canadian Marketing Association; governments of Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba, Prince Edward Island and Nunavut; Federation of Canadian Municipalities; the four main federal opposition parties;

Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami; Maytree Foundation; Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne du Canada; Quebec Community Groups Network; Rural Ontario Institute; Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants; Chinese Canadian National Council; United Way of Canada; New Brunswick Association of Social Workers; Vancouver School Board; Canadian Library Association; Canadian Association of University Teachers; Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario; Canadian Association of Journalists; United Way of Canada; United Steelworkers; United Church of Canada; Canadian Jewish Congress; Evangelical Fellowship of Canada; Anglican Church of Canada; Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops; Statistical Society of Canada; C.D. Howe Institute; Canada West Foundation; Institute for Research on Public Policy; Royal Society of Canada; Munir Sheikh and Ivan Fellegi, former Chief Statisticians of Canada; Canadian Medical Association Journal; editorial board of Nature magazine.

The chorus is coming from groups of every kind, yet the federal government continues to adhere to its wrong-headed policy. It still has time, but only a little, to listen, and reverse its census decision.

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