asked Her Majesty’s Government:

Whether they will add a separate category to the 2011 census for Romany Gypsies and Irish Travellers.

My Lords, it is not possible to confirm which questions and response categories will be included in the census until the consultation and question-testing programme is complete and formal approval has been given by Parliament in 2010. It is proposed, however, to include a category for Gypsies or Irish Travellers in an ethnic group question.

My Lords, I thank my noble friend for that reasonably positive Answer. Will the Government urge all service providers to adapt their ethnic minority monitoring categories so that, at last, we can learn more about the real situation of this most discriminated-against minority?

My Lords, I pay tribute to my noble friend for the work that she has done on this issue. Although my reply is guarded because, obviously, there is still work to be done, I assure her and the House that the intention is to include a category for Gypsies and Irish Travellers, subject to final approval. This will also be a signal for all agencies to recognise this important categorisation.

My Lords, I was pleased to hear the Minister’s confirmation of the statement made by Mr Ian Wright on 22 May about the inclusion of a tick-box for Gypsies and Travellers. Does the Minister agree that at the census content workshop in March, representatives of the Gypsies and Travellers, and of the CRE, were unanimous in asking for two separate categories to be included; namely, Gypsy and Irish Traveller? The only reason given by the ONS for not doing so was lack of space on the form. Will the Minister ask the ONS to divide the available space into two, using a smaller typeface if necessary, so that the two separate categories can be accommodated and local authorities will have the data that they need for their local development frameworks, in which Gypsies and Travellers have to be provided with separate land?

My Lords, the House will recognise that space on the form is of great value, given the multitude of demands for information that the census alone can provide. That is why the decision was made to include one tick-box and not two, although I hear what the noble Lord says about his dissatisfaction with that. However, it is recognised that the addition of this category will help public policy in future and, on the whole, Gypsies and Travellers have welcomed this contention.

My Lords, does the Minister agree that, although it might be quite romantic to know about Gypsies, caravans and all that lovely stuff, they can be a massive problem for people who live in rural areas?

My Lords, the Government have been called many things, but I do not recall romantic being one of them. This concept is not a romantic one; it is concerned with factual issues to guide public policy to reduce the very problems which the noble Lord suggests arise from time to time. When we are in a better position to assess the population concerned, we will be better able to provide it with the necessary sites and make provisions in other respects and to avoid the tensions that occur when provision is not there.

My Lords, does the Minister agree that the 10 million Roma in Europe, as the European Court of Human Rights has made clear, are the most vulnerable and despised minority in Europe and that the states have a positive obligation to protect them?

My Lords, that is certainly an important consideration. However, the noble Lord will also recognise that they are a distinct group from the Irish Travellers, so the issue is about being able to identify accurately the resources that need to be attributed to these categories to reduce the pressure of past neglect which the noble Lord has correctly identified.

My Lords, do the Government plan to raise the racist maltreatment of Romany Gypsies in certain countries of the EU, with the special connivance of Prime Minister Berlusconi, who has boasted that his Government are the new Falange?

My Lords, this Question started off being about the British census, so it is a large departure to go to policy on eastern Europe. However, an example is the best illustration of what should be done, and the Government will set the right one.

My Lords, how do the Government, and indeed local government, communicate formally with Travellers and therefore get the census forms to them if they do not have fixed addresses?

My Lords, it is quite a challenge, of course, but there is the National Federation of Gypsy Liaison Groups, the Cardiff Gypsy and Traveller Project and the Gypsy Council, and the Government have consulted all three.