Have you done yours?

So from this weekend, if you haven't returned your census form, you will be getting a visit from a collector - friendly at first, offering help in completing it, but if you still don't send it in, the visits will get progressively less friendly.  But why would people not complete them?  Well, they may have not got round to it yet, or they may have lost the form, but there will be those who are reluctant to answer the questions the form demands. We are always assured that the information on the forms will be confidential, and used simply to provide statistical information - in which case, I'm afraid it has to be asked, why does the form ask for personal details?  If all they're interested in is my sex and age, why do they need my name?  If all they're interested in is how and how far do I have to travel to work and what sort of job do I do, why do they need specific details of my employer?  I'm afraid for all their blandishments, many people have an understandable gut feeling that someone somewhere is going to be cross-referencing these forms with other information held by the government to try and catch people out.