EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Ref. Ares(2020)1785786 - 26/03/2020
EUROSTAT
The Director-General
Luxembourg,
ESTAT-DG/MK/DG01/eo/D(2020)
NOTE FOR THE ATTENTION OF
DIRECTORS-GENERAL AND PRESIDENTS OF THE NATIONAL STATISTICAL INSTITUTES
OF THE EUROPEAN STATISTICAL SYSTEM
Subject:
European Statistical System’s response to COVID-19 / number 2
Dear colleagues,
Thank you very much for keeping Eurostat informed about the enormous challenges to the
statistical operations you have faced since the outbreak of Covid-19 and for all your efforts
to ensure the continuation of statistical production and dissemination according to established
deadlines and European quality standards.
In response to the current unprecedented situation, Eurostat has undertaken or is considering
to undertake a number of actions.
Statistics to be prioritized
More than ever, European citizens, businesses and policy-makers need official statistics to
take important decisions that protect human livelihoods, contain the outbreak of Covid-19 and
overcome its adverse economic and social impacts. At the same time, the Coronavirus
pandemic has made it virtually impossible for statistical offices to continue with business as
usual. Therefore, Eurostat considers that the ESS efforts and resources should concentrate on
producing statistics that are most relevant and needed in the current situation.
Timely, reliable and comprehensive short-term statistics (monthly and quarterly), which are
planned for release in the next couple of months, will be crucial for providing an objective
picture of the economic and social situation in Europe. They will be also crucial for
developing an adequate response to the economic and social shocks caused by the
coronavirus pandemic. The prioritisation list includes the Principal European Economic
Indicators, selected indicators from Labour Force Survey, from statistics on population,
managed migration, agriculture, energy and transport. For your convenience, a detailed
prioritisation list is attached to this letter. ESS should put priority on these statistics and not
spare any effort to provide them in time and with the highest quality.
European Commission, 2920 Luxembourg, LUXEMBOURG - Tel. +352 43011
Office: BECH A4/078 - Tel. direct line +352 4301-33407
http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat
At the beginning of next week, and based on the already ongoing work, all directors’ groups
will discuss the difficulties to obtain each of the prioritised statistics and the specific actions
that should be taken to ensure their production and dissemination.
We understand that the data collections based on interviews are among the most adversely
affected by the lockdowns introduced in a number of countries. Many of you have initiated
changes in the mode of data collections and streamlined some of the questionnaires. Several
of you have suspended some surveys. All these changes have opened methodological and
comparability issues as well as required proactive common communication to the users.
Under the umbrella of the directors’ groups, dedicated virtual meetings have been, or will be
organised in the following weeks for experts to address the topical issues, especially with
regard to price collections, the LFS and SILC surveys. Additionally, changes to existing
questions and adding new questions to support the analysis of the impact of Covid-19, for
instance on the labour market and living conditions, will be considered.
We are examining the possibility of postponing some pilot projects and studies that are not
urgent. In particular, the feasibility and pilot studies foreseen under the IESS regulation
2019/1700 and the migration regulation could be postponed, with the exception of the work
needed in 2020 to manage the LFS breaks in series expected in 2021 due to the
implementation of IESS regulation. The new European business statistics regulation
2019/2152 will become applicable as of 1 January 2021 and therefore the legislative work
with respect to the package of implementing and delegated acts of the basic act should
proceed as much as possible according to the original planning.
Ongoing and new grants
The outbreak of the coronavirus will have a significant impact on the implementation of the
current and future grants and contracts of the Annual Statistical Programme. If the execution
of grants or contracts is impeded by the crisis, for example due to the unavailability of key
staff or the impossibility of carrying on work in a zone affected by the virus, the beneficiary
can send a request for extending the implementation period. If deemed appropriate by the
responsible Eurostat director, an amendment to the contract will be prepared.
Concerning the current and future calls for grants, Eurostat takes due consideration of the
concerns raised by many Member States. Therefore, the submission deadline for most of the
ongoing calls will be extended until mid-June. Only a limited number of calls with a higher
priority will be launched before that date. However, for these calls, where possible the
submission period will be significantly increased compared to the usual practice.
Meetings and missions
Eurostat will not organise physical meetings until the end of May 2020. Written
consultations, videoconferencing, especially for task forces, or postponement will be
implemented instead. Currently the opportunity to have ESSC via videoconferencing in a
restricted composition and with a much shorter agenda is also under investigation. All
Eurostat’ missions will also be suspended until the end of May 2020.
All the measures described above will be reassessed at a later stage to take into account the
evolution of the Covid-19 crisis in Europe.
2
Dear colleagues,
It is clear that the outbreak of the coronavirus is having a significant impact on the
administrative capacities in your respective countries, as your governments take the necessary
measures necessary to protect citizens. Even so, the proper application of EU law remains
crucial, including respecting deadlines established in law. As already emphasised in my letter
to you on 18 March, it is a priority to ensure the continuity of producing high-quality
statistics on Europe, fulfilling our duty towards European citizens and policymakers who rely
on our data. With this in mind, Eurostat will explore the potential flexibilities with a view to
finding pragmatic solutions in each case, while safeguarding the interests of the EU as a
whole. The success of this approach will depend on our common efforts and transparent
collaboration.
Yours sincerely,
(eSigned)
Mariana Kotzeva
Annex: 1
3
Annex: Prioritised Statistics
Principal European Economic Indicators (PEEIs)
Consumer Price Indicators
Monthly Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices: euro area flash estimate
Monthly Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices
Quarterly National Accounts
Quarterly National Accounts: First GDP (flash) estimates
Quarterly National Accounts: GDP release with more breakdowns
Quarterly National Accounts: Household and Company Accounts
Quarterly National Accounts: Government Finance Statistics
Business Indicators
Monthly Industrial production
Monthly Industrial producer prices for domestic markets
Monthly Industrial import prices
Monthly Production in construction
Monthly Retail trade turnover
Quarterly Services turnover
Quarterly Services producer prices
Labour Market Indicators
Monthly Unemployment rate
Quarterly Job vacancy rate
Quarterly Employment
Quarterly Labour cost index
International Trade in goods
Monthly International trade in goods balance: intra- and extra-euro area; intra- and extra-EU
Housing Indicators
Quarterly House price index
Annual House sales
Monthly Building permits
European Social Statistics
Population and vital events of first 6 months 2020
Quarterly employment and unemployment statistics
Monthly and quarterly managed migration statistics
European Sectoral Statistics (Agriculture, Energy, Transports)
Monthly Animal production statistics (milk, meat, poultry)
Annual Crop production statistics (area and production estimates), multiple transmissions
Monthly Energy statistics (quantities of electricity, oil, coal, natural gas & crude oil imports)
Quarterly Transport statistics (road, air, rail, maritime, inland waterways)
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Electronically signed on 26/03/2020 17:48 (UTC+01) in accordance with article 4.2 (Validity of electronic documents) of Commission Decision 2004/563