In A First, Less Than Half Of UK And Wales Population Follows Christianity: Census Data

IN A first, Christians now account for less than half of the total population in both England and Wales, as per the fresh census data released by the UK government. The 10-yearly census which was carried out in 2021 showed massive growth for the Muslim population, but "no religion" was the second most common response after Christian, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

Despite the downfall in the increasing rate of Christianity, the most common response of people remained ‘Christian’ when asked about religion. As per the ONS data, Christianity increased to 37.2 per cent (22.2 million) from 25.2 per cent (14.1 million) over the period of ten years.

The religion question was added to the UK census in 2001. However, it is voluntary for people to answer this question, but the data showed that 94.0 per cent of respondents answered the religion question. As many as 27.5 million people or 46.2 per cent in England and Wales identified themselves as Christian, a fall of 13.1 per cent as compared to 2011.

Muslims stood at 3.9 million which is 6.5 per cent of the population which was earlier 4.9 per cent. No religion rose by 12 points to 37.2 per cent or 22.2 million. The next most common responses were Hindu (1 million) and Sikh (524,000), while Buddhists overtook Jewish people (273,000 to 271,000).

The Archbishop of York said Stephen Cottrell said it was no “great surprise” that the Christian population in the UK is declining over time, but it’s important to note that Christianity is the “the largest movement on Earth”. Stephen also emphasised that facing a cost of living crisis and war in Europe, people still need spiritual sustenance.

"We will be there for them, in many cases, providing food and warmth. And at Christmas millions of people will still come to our services. At the same time, we will be looking beyond our immediate surroundings, remembering we are part of a global faith, the largest movement on Earth and its greatest hope for a peaceful, sustainable future," he said.

However, Andrew Copson, the chief executive of Humanists UK, called the census a ‘wake-up call for the religion asking for fresh reconsiderations of the role of Christianity in society. "The biggest demographic change in England and Wales of the last ten years has been the dramatic growth of the non-religious. They mean the UK is almost certainly one of the least religious countries on Earth."