Getting the small things right.

AuthorCuddy, James
PositionThink Tank

Northern Policy Institute recently released a briefing note about how data is (or isn't) being collected in Northern Ontario, and how this can impact our knowledge and perception of important public policy issues in the region. The first part of the report focused on the perils of the 2011 National Household Survey (NHS), and the second part zeroed in on a new idea: creating a set of regional economic accounts for Northern Ontario.

As we have all heard by now, there were many issues when Statistics Canada introduced the voluntary NHS to replace the mandatory long-form census in 2011. Naturally, most of these issues stemmed from the fact that, because it is voluntary, less people responded to the survey. And when fewer people respond to the survey, Statistics Canada is more likely to suppress the data.

This is exactly what happened in many small, rural communities in Northern Ontario.

Out of the 278 census subdivisions (otherwise known as communities) in our region, 107 (or 38 per cent) of them were suppressed in the NHS. Conversely, in the south, only 13 per cent of communities were suppressed. In other words, 74 per cent of suppressed communities in the province were in the North.

This means there was no data on the labour market, education levels, income levels, immigration, and many other indicators.

Making matters worse is that the census/NHS was just about the only source of consistent and reliable data that these small communities had access to. The NHS created a data gap in the North, and it's not surprising that many passionately supported the return of the mandatory long-form census.

While the reinstatement of the long-form census will help remedy some issues, another data gap remains in Northern Ontario: a set of regional economic accounts. Currently, Statistics Canada publishes economic accounts for each province and territory --the idea here is that the same should be done for Northern Ontario. Yes, a region within a province.

Our region needs its own set of economic accounts because Northern Ontario is fundamentally different from the rest of the province in many ways. The industrial and occupational structure in the North is very different. The demographic makeup is very different. Governance is different. These and many other differences are well-known.

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