UPDATED: 3 September, 2:07pm

Following the nation-wide outcry over the weekend, Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese has announced that Labour will look to include questions of sexual orientation in the 2026 census collection. 

Talking with the Australian Bureau of Statistics, since Friday's announcement, PM Albanese confirmed that the upcoming census will include one question about gender identification. “We've been talking with the Australian Bureau of Statistics and they're going to test for a new question. One question about sexuality, sexual preference.” he said  

“They'll be testing, making sure as well that people will have the option of not answering it – prefer not to answer. But we think that is a common sense position”

However, Albanese said that the recent backflip on the decision to include questions of gender identity comes with knowing how effective census data collection is, yet being hyper aware of the changed society we are currently living in. “There isn't going to be is holus-bolus massive changes to the Census, because we think that it's been pretty effective in the past, and for a range of issues the Census isn't the right vehicle to engage with the community across a whole range of issues. It's not the be all and end all.”

“The world has changed with the Census. We now have data collection in a range of ways, including on our phones and through Facebook and through the range of vehicles that are available, as we know.

During a press conference in Tasmania on Friday, opposition leader, Peter Dutton called the decision to backflip a demonstration of weak leadership. “I think the Prime Minister’s all over the shop, one day he says to a group of people that he’s meeting with that he’s going to change the question put to the Australian people in the census, the next day, he says that he’s not going to do that, now he says that he is going to do that,” Mr Dutton said.

"And unfortunately Australians are seeing a weak Prime Minister across many areas that are having an impact on them and their lives and their livelihoods."

Anna Brown, Equality Australia CEO has said that the government will essentially be marking a portion of the population “invisible” if questions of gender identity are limited. “The federal government has betrayed LGBTIQ+ people around Australia who will again be rendered invisible in 2026 because the census won’t ask appropriate questions about who they are and how they live,” said Equality Australia CEO Anna Brown. 

“Our communities will continue to feel invisible and demeaned because the federal government hasn’t taken this opportunity to finally reflect the diversity of Australia and gather crucial information about the kinds of services people need.” 

To read more about Equality Australia’s position follow the #CountUsIn2026 

The upcoming 2026 Census has sparked a significant debate in Australia, following the government's decision to exclude questions about sexuality from the survey.

This move, revealed by Acting Prime Minister Richard Marles, has reignited concerns over the lack of representation for the LGBTQIA+ community in national data collection.

Despite earlier commitments by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) to address this omission after the 2021 Census, the latest announcement by ABS head statistician Dr David Gruen indicates that testing for these crucial questions has been abruptly halted.

This decision raises critical questions about the nation's progress in acknowledging and supporting its diverse population.

What is the census? The census is an extensive questionnaire sent to Australian households every five years. Every Australian citizen must take the census wherever they reside on the night it is released. Basically generating a snapshot of the Australian population based on country of birth, religion, occupation, and education. 

The problem right now: Acting Prime Minister Richard Marles recently revealed that the government has chosen not to include or ask questions about sexuality in the 2026 census, but has not indicated the reasons why.

The upheaval in the media currently follows as the outcry after the 2021 census did not include questions identifying the LGBTQIA+ community, suggesting that the omission was an instance of discrimination.

The ABS then committed to working towards altering the 2026 census questions to ensure no further harm or exclusion was made to those in the LGBTQIA+ community.

On Monday 26 August, however, the bureau's head statistician, Dr David Gruen, announced that the testing for new questions set to be included in the 2026 rollout has been scrapped. "Given the government's announcement yesterday that topics will remain unchanged from 2021, I have decided that the upcoming test will not proceed," Dr Gruen said.

"The test would have included topics that the government has now decided will not be in the 2026 Census."

Why is it important? Australia has grown into an incredibly diverse country, with an estimated 11 percent of the population identifying within the LGBTQIA+ community. 

However, due to the lack of data surrounding sexual orientation, gender identity and variations in sex characteristics, this portion of the population who identify with these categories are essentially missing out on government funding required for services aimed at or including LGBTQIA+ people.

ABS data shows that the population identifying within the LGBTQIA+ community suffer poor rates of mental health, ongoing discrimination, stigma and barriers to medical treatment. 

Are we moving forward or backward? What do you think? Following the announcement, an uproar in advocacy took the streets. 

Urging the Federal government to reconsider the decision to overturn their commitment to LGBTIQA+-related questions and topics in the 2026 Census, Australia’s Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Dr Anna Cody, says that this will only strengthen the voices of discrimination. 

“I am concerned that this decision will strengthen the voices of discrimination and division that seek to disrupt the nation’s social cohesion,” Dr Cody said.

“However, while we must seek to minimise harm, the answer cannot be to do nothing. LGBTIQA+ Australians and their rights must be protected and supported, as must the rights of all Australians.”

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