Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by his Department.

Answered by Ian Murray - Secretary of State for Scotland

The Scotland Office does not hold information in relation to the ethnicity of staff.

All staff that join the Scotland Office, do so on an assignment, loan or secondment from other Government bodies, principally the Ministry of Justice and the Scottish Government, who remain the employers. All information in relation to protected characteristics, including the ethnicity of staff is held and managed by the employing departments.

Question to the Wales Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by her Department.

Answered by Jo Stevens - Secretary of State for Wales

My Department is not an employer in its own right and the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) provide employment services on our behalf, including setting ethnicity data categories for collection.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by his Department.

Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office follows the Government Statistical Service's harmonised standard for ethnicity classification. We will not unilaterally change our data categories as it would make our data inconsistent with wider Civil Service and Office for National Statistics (ONS) statistics.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by his Department.

Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

DSIT collects ethnicity data through the voluntary completion of a diversity declaration by its staff. Like most public bodies, we collect ethnicity data in line with the ethnicity harmonised standard, which is developed by the independent Office for National Statistics.

The current harmonised standard is based on the 2011 Census questions used across the UK; those questions were updated for the 2021 and 2022 Censuses. The current standard does not include specific “Sikh” and “Jewish” categories for a person’s ethnic group.

The ONS is reviewing the harmonised standard to ensure this remains appropriate and meets the needs of both data users and respondents. This will include a public consultation later this year.

We await the outcome of this review.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by his Department.

Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

The Northern Ireland Office usually collect ethnicity data in line with the ethnicity harmonised standard, which is developed by the independent Office for National Statistics.

The current harmonised standard is based on the 2011 Census questions used across the UK; those questions were updated for the 2021 and 2022 Censuses. The current standard does not include specific “Sikh” and “Jewish” categories for a person’s ethnic group.

The ONS is reviewing the harmonised standard to ensure this remains appropriate and meets the needs of both data users and respondents. This will include a public consultation later this year.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by her Department.

Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

HM Treasury follows guidance from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and Government Statistical Service (GSS) on data collection using harmonised standards to ensure comparability across government. The current ethnicity standard is based on 2011 Census questions, which were reviewed and updated for the 2021 Census. The GSS has been conducting a comprehensive review of the ethnicity standard since March 2022, considering a range of user needs.

HM Treasury also collects staff data on ethnic group, national identity and religion, which helps capture fuller cultural identity beyond ethnicity alone. The ONS recognises that ethnic group membership is self-defined and subjectively meaningful to individuals, and there is no universal consensus on what constitutes an ethnic group.

The religion harmonised standard includes Sikh and Jewish response options, and any changes to data collection categories, including ethnicity, would follow the updated GSS harmonised standard once their review concludes. We continue to monitor this review closely and will implement any revised standards that emerge from the GSS process.

The timing for any changes will depend on when the GSS completes its review and issues updated guidance to departments.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many hate crime reports were made to the police by the Sikh Guard in each of the last five years.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office publishes official statistics on the number of religious hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales by the targeted religion of the victim. The Home Office does not hold data on who reported these crimes to the police.

The latest information, for the year ending March 2024, can be found here: Hate crime, England and Wales, year ending March 2024 - GOV.UK

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by his Department.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero follows established government standards and guidance when collecting data on ethnicity. At present, there are no plans to introduce specific Sikh or Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in departmental data collection. For external surveys and research, we generally use the harmonised ethnicity standards developed by the Government Statistical Service (GSS), which currently do not include specific Sikh or Jewish categories. However, it is important to note that these standards are under ongoing review. In addition, while Sikh and Jewish are not included as ethnic categories, they are represented in the harmonised question on religion.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by her Department.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

Public bodies usually collect ethnicity data in line with the ethnicity harmonised standard, which is developed by the independent Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The Ministry of Justice collects ethnicity data in line with the ethnicity harmonised standard.

The current harmonised standard is based on the 2011 Census questions used across the UK; those questions were updated for the 2021 and 2022 Censuses. The current standard does not include specific “Sikh” and “Jewish” categories for a person’s ethnic group.

The ONS is reviewing the harmonised standard to ensure this remains appropriate and meets the needs of both data users and respondents. This will include a public consultation later this year.

We await the outcome of this review.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by his Department.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) adheres to the guidance provided by Civil Service Statistics which records Sikh and Jewish under the classification of religion. The MOD’s Biannual Diversity statistics are available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/uk-armed-forces-biannual-diversity-statistics-index

Public bodies usually collect ethnicity data in line with the ethnicity harmonised standard, which is developed by the independent Office for National Statistics (ONS). The current harmonised ethnicity standard is based on the 2011 Census questions used across the UK; those questions were updated for the 2021 and 2022 Censuses. The current standard does not include specific “Sikh” and “Jewish” categories for a person’s ethnic group. The ONS is reviewing the harmonised standard to ensure this remains appropriate and meets the needs of both data users and respondents. This will include a public consultation later this year and we await the outcome of this review.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by her Department.

Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

There are no plans for the Department for Transport to assess the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group as part of data collection.

For analytical data collection, the Department follows Office for National Statistics guidance on how to capture personal characteristics and ethnic group data choices are aligned to the Civil Service wide NOVA Functional Reference Model.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by her Department.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Public bodies usually collect ethnicity data in line with the ethnicity harmonised standard, which is developed by the independent Office for National Statistics.

The current harmonised standard is based on the 2011 Census questions used across the UK; those questions were updated for the 2021 and 2022 Censuses. The current standard does not include specific “Sikh” and “Jewish” categories for a person’s ethnic group.

The ONS is reviewing the harmonised standard to ensure this remains appropriate and meets the needs of both data users and respondents. This will include a public consultation later this year.

We await the outcome of this review.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing specific (a) Sikh and (b) Jewish options for a person’s ethnic group in data collection conducted by her Department.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

Public bodies usually collect ethnicity data in line with the ethnicity harmonised standard, which is developed by the independent Office for National Statistics.

The current harmonised standard is based on the 2011 Census questions used across the UK; those questions were updated for the 2021 and 2022 Censuses. The current standard does not include specific “Sikh” and “Jewish” categories for a person’s ethnic group.

The ONS is reviewing the harmonised standard to ensure this remains appropriate and meets the needs of both data users and respondents. This will include a public consultation later this year.

We await the outcome of this review.