Census question must change to stop spiritual pork-barrelling

Recently it's become a triumvirate of conservative clerics, politicians and right-wing media trying to stamp out rationalism.

The 2021 census is a classic example of how fundamentalist religion, politics and media have come together. The way it will collect data on religion is fatally flawed - and it matters, because there are serious consequences.

The census question "What is the person's religion?" is biased, as it implicitly assumes every citizen has one.

To see the results of this bias, just look at the 2016 census, which saw 30 per cent of Australians declare "no religion", and 60 per cent some kind of religion. That's hopelessly wrong, and the government knows it.

It simply has no qualms collecting childhood faiths from people who long ago abandoned a family religion. Other ABS data shows these people don't practise it, and feel that religion is not important to them.

A July Essential Poll commission by the National Secular Lobby reflects the current reality of the "no religion v religion" split. It's not the 2016 result of 30-60 - it is in fact 52-41. A two-thirds "rise" in no religion and a one-third drop in religion. Also, around 10 per cent of Australians belong to non-Christian religions, so Christianity right now is sitting at around just 30 per cent.

Also keep in mind that when expressly asked if they "belong" to a religious organisation, 62 per cent of Australian say they don't.

In truth, Christians of full-on devout faith - mostly Pentecostals (like the Prime Minister, Scott Morrison) and other evangelicals - number just 10 per cent. A small base, with too much power to sway politicians.

Conservative prime ministers from Robert Menzies, John Howard, Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull, and now Scott Morrison - not to mention the ALP - have contributed greatly to the promotion of religion. They have all ignored the fact that religiosity in Australia, since 1911, has been in steady decline.

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So why is this all important? It's more than important - it's critical. A primary objective of the census is to collect accurate data which will allow the government to provide "better services and infrastructure planning - and to responsibly allocate funding and resources".

To be clear - this is not an attack on people having a faith; it's about religious political influence and dishonesty. Undeniably, religious political influence has steadily increased. In 2014 a full 40 per cent of kids attended private religious schools, up from near zero when Menzies first started to fund Catholic schools. In 2016, Catholic school funding was $12 billion, and public schools struggle for functional funding.

Add to this the billions the government gifts to a variety of private religious businesses in aged care and other public services - not including genuine charities. Concurrently, public schools and higher education, public hospitals and other support services are almost viewed as welfare programs.

Just like the sports and car park rorts before the last federal election, the gifting of billions of dollars to private religious businesses - all of which pay no tax - amounts to spiritual pork-barrelling.

Secular Australians aren't "anti-religion". People can believe exactly what they wish - whether it's alien invasions, a flat Earth, or homeopathy.

But please don't weaponise your religion to rort billions in taxpayer funds based on shonky census data, starving vital funds from a vast array of public education and other services. It's dishonest and un-Australian.

The secular majority - now armed with indisputable evidence of the ongoing rort, caused by a loaded religious question - will launch its new campaign in 2022, when the ABS calls for submissions for the 2026 census. The question must finally be changed.