I find it difficult to believe that benefit fraud has much influence on
census accuracy.
A major influence of the benefit system is that identified by Paul earlier
when he suggested that the missing men could include up to one-third of a
million men who are partners of lone parents.
'Partners' is a useful word in this situation. Typically (I hope) there is
a component of sexual enjoyment in these relationships. But neither
cooperative sexual activity nor sleeping together disqualifies a single
parent from benefit. The rules stress financial interdependence.
Typically I imagine that the partners are fairly well informed and they
carefully manage the relationship, and addresses, and how they handle money,
so as not to infringe the rules that allow them retain a degree of financial
independence from each other. It would not be very meaningful to
describe this as fraud. The partners are just conducting their affairs in
ways that are consistent with the DSS rules.
It would present a bit of quandary if single parents confessed to receiving
money from their partners in return for sexual favours. Would that
demonstrate financial interdependence? Or would it demonstrate
prostitution aiming to achieve professional independence? No easy
answers.
Understandably, the DSS would prefer to avoid getting involved in such
questions. But the GSS and the ONS appear to go to an extreme in refusing
to even think about the influence of the benefit system on survey and census
response rates.
Is there any acknowledgement in any of the debate on census shortcomings
that there are good reasons to expect that the 'partners' of lone parents
are likely to have been missed?
Ray Thomas
35 Passmore, Tinkers Bridge, Milton Keynes MK6 3DY
Email: [log in to unmask]
Tel 01908 679081 Fax 01908 550401
----- Original Message -----
From: "Paul Bivand" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Friday, July 09, 2004 11:25 PM
Subject: Re: Census figures can no longer be relied on
> Benefit fraud is a rather complex issue - which is likely to have had some
> sort of impact on the census results as indicated to some extent in my
> comments quoted in the article.
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