Major polling companies YouGov, Essential and UComms have announced their intention to form an Australian Polling Council.
The Australian Polling Council is set to be an association of esteemed polling organisations that regularly provide data and insights in the Australian media landscape. The three companies conduct the majority of political polls in the Australian market.
The objectives of the Council are to adhere to a strict set of guidelines intended to:
- Ensure standards of disclosure that provide an adequate basis for judging the reliability and validity of the results of survey results that are published in media
- Encourage the highest professional standards in public opinion polling and advance the understanding of how polls are conducted and how to interpret poll results
- Inform media and the public about best practice in the conduct and reporting of polls
Inspired by similar organisations in the US and Great Britain; YouGov, Essential and UComms believe that the future of Australian polling should operate with guidelines informed by a deep understanding of the market and the complexities of the local landscape.
These guidelines aim to provide an appropriate balance between responsible disclosure to the public, the needs of media outlets, and the intellectual property rights of the polling companies. Active polling companies in the industry are invited to join in to develop these guidelines.
The Australian Polling Council believes that though published political polling needs to have appropriate standards of transparency, existing standards of disclosure are not fit for purpose. The guidelines ought to be determined by active pollsters as well as accepted by the Australian media.
The Australian Polling Council will announce a new set of standards and requirements for disclosure before July 2020.
For further information, please contact us on polling_apac@yougov.com.
