Data Expert disappointed at botched Census

Minister of Statistics James Shaw has described the 2018 census as 'a mixed bag' after a report revealed missing key data for Maori and a general response rate he described as unacceptably low. Yesterday the head of Statistics NZ resigned following the release of a report into the botched 2018 online census. The department's annual report released last year said it had collected responses from 90 percent of the estimated population - down 4 percent since 2013 census. But figures released last month showed a response rate of 83 percent - falling short of the 94 percent target. Richard Arnold is the Data Science programme director at Victoria University and joined Indira Stewart.