Both highly anticipated and relatively infrequent events, the census is to economists what a World Cup is to sports fans, but economists need to be more patient as the census only happens once every five years, and it takes longer to get the results.In the same way that sports fans appreciate their statistics, economists love their data, and because every Australian and every household in the country is required to complete the census, it provides a unique and comprehensive point-in-time snapshot about who we are, and how we live and work. Unlike sporting data, names are separated from census data and the statistics released in a way that no one can be identified.Subscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? Fetching latest articles