Cyclone Gabrielle

In February 2023, Cyclone Gabrielle had devastated parts of the North Island, prompting the Government to declare a national state of emergency in six regions.^[17] To address the disruption caused by Cyclone Gabrielle, the Government had agreed to an eight week extension of the census for the worst affected areas.^[18] People living in cyclone-affected areas including the Far North District, Gisborne District, and Hawkes Bay have until 1 June to complete their Census.^[19]

In addition, Statistics New Zealand asked the Government for an extra NZ$37 million to cover extra costs. Face-to-face visits were also delayed in some affected areas. Field operations in Gisborne and Hawkes Bay commenced on 3 April.^[17]

Participation rates

On 6 March 2023, Radio New Zealand reported that just one million New Zealanders had filled out their census forms. Statistics New Zealand's deputy chief executive census and collections operation, Simon Mason, described the response as underwhelming and attributed the lower response rate to the disruption caused by Cyclone Gabrielle and opposition by some on social media to participating in the census. In response to criticism of the 2018 New Zealand census, Mason confirmed that Statistics NZ had sent two forms in the post to bolster public engagement.^[18]

By 31 March, Statistics NZ had confirmed that four million people had returned their census forms; beating the 30 April milestone for the 2018 census. On 5 April, Newsroom reported that one in five people had not returned their census forms, with the figure rising to two in five people within the Māori and Pacific communities. Newsroom also reported low rates of participation in Gisborne and Hawkes Bay; with 26,200 out of Gisborne's estimated total population of 52,100 and 89,300 out of Hawkes Bay's population of 182,700 returning their survey forms.^[17]

According to Newsroom, Statistics NZ had fallen behind its target of visiting all non-responding and partially responding households by nine days after 7 March. By 31 March, 29,000 dwellings outside Te Mana Whakatipu, Gisborne, and Hawkes Bay had not received their first visit. Mason also confirmed that census workers had made 1.3 million non-response follow-up visits to 790,000 dwellings by 31 March. In an effort to boost participation, Statistics NZ deployed over 3,000 census collectors in the community until 3 May and until 1 June in Hawkes Bay and Gisborne. Mason also confirmed that Statistics NZ would focus on supporting under-represented groups including Māori.^[17]

By 20 April, Statistics NZ confirmed that 4.3 million people had returned their census forms while one in five respondents had not returned their forms. The Bay of Plenty Times reported that 274,300 had returned their forms by 19 April. However, 73,400 forms had not been returned; with 37,300 of these non-respondents being Māori and 17,700 being youths. Non-respondents face a NZ$2,000 fine under the Data and Statistics Act 2022.^[19]

By 1 May, Statistics NZ confirmed that 4,408,894 people out of an estimated population of 5.15 million had returned their census forms. Statistics NZ spokesperson Tracy Dillimore confirmed that the national Census response rate was 86%. Deputy government statistician Simon Mason warned that people who had not completed their census forms would receive a final notice from 9 May.^[20]

National Party statistics spokesperson Simon Watts described the 2023 Census as a failure and doubted that Statistics NZ would reach its 90% target. Watts also disputed Statistic NZ's position that Cyclone Gabrielle had disrupted the census collection process, pointing out that most of the uncompleted forms were from major cities with lower completion rates among Māori and Pasifika. Watts estimated that the 2023 Census would cost NZ$337 million, including the extra NZ$37 million requested by Statistics NZ. By contrast, the Minister of Statistics Deborah Russell claimed that the 2023 Census was an improvement over the 2018 Census, citing the former's 86% response rate in comparison with the latter's overall response rate of 81.6%.^[20]

By 20 May, 4.5 million census forms (covering 88% of the population) had been returned. According to Deputy Government Statistician Simon Mason, 55,000 final notice packs had been sent to non-responding households. At the time, 25% of Māori and Pasifika had not returned their census forms. During the 2023 census, Te Whānau-ā-Apanui trialled a "by Māori, for Māori" census collection drive in East Cape, Te Tai Rāwhiti and parts of Te Tai Tokerau. Data Iwi Leaders Forum spokesperson Rahui Papa credited the "by Māori, for Māori" drive with ensuring a 90% Māori uptake in the East Cape.^[21]