2011 Canadian census

The 2011 Canadian census was a detailed count of the Canadian population on May 10, 2011. Statistics Canada, an agency of the Canadian government, conducts a nationwide census every five years. In 2011, it included a mandatory short form questionnaire for everyone and a new voluntary survey called the National Household Survey, which replaced a longer mandatory form. This change caused much discussion because some people felt it was important to have the longer form.

Completing the short form census was required by law for all Canadians. The Statistics Act required a review of some rules about sharing census records after 92 years. The 2011 census was needed because of a rule in the Constitution Act, 1867, and the information helped decide how to divide areas for elections.

By August 2011, most people in Canada had completed the census, with a response rate of 98.1%. Ontario and Prince Edward Island had the highest response rates, while Nunavut had the lowest. Some groups and experts later said that changing the census made it harder to get detailed information about the country.

Questionnaire revision

The 2011 Canadian census used a short form with the same eight questions from the 2006 census, plus two new questions about language. This change happened because a group called the Federation of Francophone and Acadian Communities said the old way might affect services for language groups.

The National Household Survey started soon after the census in May 2011. It asked about 4.5 million households and was meant to replace the old long form questionnaire. Some experts thought the information from this voluntary survey might not be as good as the old mandatory one.

Voluntary long-form survey controversy

Before the 2011 census, the government decided that the detailed questionnaire would no longer be required. Instead, they introduced a new survey called the National Household Survey that people could choose to fill out. This change was made because some people were concerned about sharing private information.

Many groups and experts were upset about this change. They said it would make it harder to get accurate information, especially from groups like new immigrants and Indigenous peoples. Some leaders even left their jobs in protest. The government said the change was to respect people's privacy, but others thought it was to make it harder to find out about groups that needed help. The government spent money trying to get more people to answer the new survey, but there were worries that not enough people would respond.

Reforms since 2011

In September 2014, a member of Parliament named Ted Hsu suggested a change to how Canada counts its people. He wanted to bring back a detailed form used in past censuses. However, this idea did not become law.

After the Liberal government, led by Justin Trudeau, was elected, they made changes to the rules about how Canada collects information. These changes were completed in 2017. Then, in 2015, they brought back the detailed form for the census, and it was used again in the 2016 census.

Main article: Statistics Act

Data releases

Population and dwellings

Rank	Province or territory	Population as of 2011 census	Population as of 2006 census	Change	Percent change
1	Ontario	12,851,821	12,160,282	691,539	5.7
2	Quebec	7,903,001	7,546,131	356,870	4.7
3	British Columbia	4,400,057	4,113,487	286,570	7.0
4	Alberta	3,645,257	3,290,350	354,907	10.8
5	Manitoba	1,208,268	1,148,401	59,867	5.2
6	Saskatchewan	1,033,381	968,157	65,224	6.7
7	Nova Scotia	921,727	913,462	8,265	0.9
8	New Brunswick	751,171	729,997	21,174	2.9
9	Newfoundland and Labrador	514,536	505,469	9,067	1.8
10	Prince Edward Island	140,204	135,851	4,353	3.2
11	Northwest Territories	41,462	41,464	−2	0.0
12	Yukon	33,897	30,372	3,525	11.6
13	Nunavut	31,906	29,474	2,432	8.3
	Canada	33,476,688	31,612,897	1,863,791	5.9