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Privacy is a key reason that we have kept data collected by these administrative systems separate. In the same way that Canadians (and Americans, Australians and Brits) haven’t historically liked the idea of national identity cards, we haven’t cared for the idea of having all of our data connected and in one place.

This is changing. For good or ill, we are becoming more and more comfortable with sharing our data, as we leave traces of our activities and identities across the Internet. We trade some privacy for the convenience of having Amazon remember our credit card numbers, or recommending the right book on our next visit. We might also be happy to avoid answering the same questions repeatedly, if we are assured the data will be used appropriately.

Elements of a new system based on “data linkage” are already being developed. Projects across the country are connecting health, tax and vital statistics records to other sources of data including the census and surveys, usually for a limited number of people or years, and under the tight control of privacy commissioners and ethics bodies. We are getting better at linking data that were not designed to be linked, and developing the technical, legal and administrative tools to safeguard privacy while facilitating research and access by government and civil society groups.

The national statistics system is important to our economic and social well being, and any changes should be very carefully considered. The 2010 changes have been harmful but, rather than trying to recreate the old system, I would rather see us think about what a new system might look like, and to ensure that it meets the needs and expectations of Canadians.

Martin Cooke is an associate professor at the University of Waterloo and Co-Director, Waterloo Survey Research Centre.