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The ONS has been experimenting with data from mobile phone users, electricity smart meters, Twitter and property site Zoopla, in four pilot studies aimed at making the survey’s output more relevant to modern life. It said this would provide insight into mobility and migration thanks to geo-located tweets and mobile phone tracking. It will identify long-term unoccupied properties from electricity smart meters and enhance the country’s address register — including park caravan homes — using data from Zoopla. However, critics have warned the changes would raise concerns among privacy campaigners and could make the census incomparable with past versions. Jane Naylor, head of the ONS’s Big Data Project, said she was aware of the ethical and privacy concerns but said: “It isn’t just about saving money, it’s about updating and modernising the output that we can produce, keeping relevant and meeting our user needs.” The ONS hopes the introduction of alternative sources will red...