An amendment intended to ensure census workers have enough time to complete their work was passed by senators yesterday.

And Senate leader David Burch announced that after a successful trial run in Smith’s, telephone interviews will be available Island-wide as the census continues. “Due to the success of the trial, this month, telephone interviews will be carried over to all areas,” Sen Burch told the Upper House.

The 2010 census began on May 20. It originally had a deadline of September 30 but a lower than expected number of census takers, and concerns about violence in some neighborhoods, kept the survey from being completed on time.

An amendment allowing the completion deadline to be pushed back had to first be presented in the House of Assembly. It meant that progress was halted with only one-third of households surveyed.

The census was later restarted with a December 31 deadline. According to Sen Burch, around 51 percent of homes have now completed the survey.

Senators yesterday unanimously approved the amendment, stressing the importance of the census and urging the public to make sure they are counted.

Independent Senator Joan Dillas-Wright said: “I’m very pleased that telephone interviews are being introduced.

“People need to know the census is not just a matter of the Government prying. This information is needed to make informed decisions about the future of the Island.”