Sikhs sue Government over refusal to treat them as ethnic group in census

British Sikhs are taking the Government to the high court on Tuesday over its "unlawful" refusal to treat them as an ethnic group in the 2021 census.

They claim Government is acting unlawfully by denying the UK's estimated 800,000 Sikhs the right to declare their ethnicity alongside other groups including Afro-Caribbeans, black Africans, Indians, Pakistanis, Chinese, Arabs and gypsies or Irish travellers.

They want a mandatory ethnicity tick box question to be included in the 2021 census,  saying it was unlawful for the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to refuse them such a right.

The census provides Government, councils and other local authorities with the information on their local populations that they need in order to help plan, provide and fund services.

In 2011, the UK-wide census recorded about 430,000 Sikhs based on a non-mandatory question about religion.

However, the Sikh Federation, which is bringing the legal action, says not all people who would identify as ethnically Sikh identify as religiously Sikh.

It estimates there are 700,000 to 800,000 ethnic Sikhs in the UK and says it is vital that the ethnic Sikh population is properly accounted for.

Rosa Curling, a solicitor at the London law firm Leigh Day, which is acting for the Sikhs, said: “Our clients have identified a number of flaws within the process for determining whether to include a Sikh ethnicity category in the 2021 Census.

“They believe it is crucial that individuals are able to identify as ethnically Sikh in the next census to ensure a more accurate picture of the community is taken.

“This will ensure public bodies are fulfilling their duties under the Equality Act when making decisions about the allocation of vital public services.”

The ONS said its recommendations followed extensive research and consultation and everyone who wished to identify as Sikh would be able to do so either through the religion question or a “write-in” option on the ethnicity question.

It added: “ONS will estimate the Sikh population using alternative data sources to assess the numbers who may declare themselves of Sikh background but not through the religion question.”