28. 6. 89 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 161/1 
(Information) 
COUNCIL 
COUNCIL RESOLUTION 
of 19 June 1989 
on the implementation of a plan of priority actions in the field of statistical information: 
Statistical programme of the European Communities (1989 to 1992) 
(89/C 161/01) 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, 
Having regard to the Treaties establishing the European 
Communities, 
Having regard to the draft resolution submitted by the 
Commission, 
Having regard to the opinion of the European 
Parliament (l), 
Whereas the implementation, monitoring and assessment 
of Community policies largely depend on the existence 
of relevant and sufficiently reliable statistical infor­
mation; 
Whereas the attainment of the objectives assigned to the 
European Communities, in particular the creation of the 
internal market provided for in the Single European Act, 
requires the implementation of a comprehensive and 
coherent programme in the field of statistical infor­
mation; whereas the Commission has designated 
objectives in a communication to the Council dated 29 
April 1988; 
Whereas this statistical programme of the European 
Communities (1989 to 1992), hereinafter called the 
'statistical programme', will give fresh impetus to the 
search for European statistical standards in the 
Community and will serve to improve the flow of 
comparable statistical information for the benefit of 
Community policy; 
Whereas the implementation of the statistical programme 
will require decisions to be taken on the priorities of the 
proposed new developments and a reassessment of 
existing statistical work in the light of Community 
(') Opinion delivered on 26 May 1989 (not yet published in the 
Official Journal). requirements, while guaranteeing that the standing of 
existing Community instruments will not be jeopardized; 
Whereas, while maintaining the quality of statistical 
information, all necessary efforts must be made to reduce 
as far as possible the burden of collecting data from 
enterprises and households; 
Whereas, in order to facilitate the implementation of the 
statistical programme, close cooperation should be main­
tained between the Member States and the Commission, 
in particular via the Conference of the Directors-General 
of the national statistical institutes and sectoral statistical 
commitees and by the creation of a statistical programme 
committee with the task of assisting the Commission in 
the implementation of the current programme and the 
preparation of subsequent programmes and with such 
other tasks as are attributed to it by acts of the Council 
in the field of statistics; 
Whereas, in order to relate the information on the 
Community to that on its main economic partners, it is 
necessary to increase the comparability of statistics at 
world level by taking an active part in the work of other 
international organizations; 
Whereas, in implementing the statistical programme, 
particular regard must be paid to the costs which any 
statistical investigation under the programme imposes 
both on national administrations and on economic 
agents; 
Whereas action to be undertaken in implementation of 
the statistical programme must be financed by the 
Community from appropriations included in the financial 
perspective 1988 to 1992 (under the heading 'Other 
policies') contained in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 
29 June 1988, 
No C 161/2 Official Journal of the European Communities 28. 6. 89 
CONSIDERS that the statistical programme provides a 
comprehensive and coherent framework that will statisfy 
Community requirements with regard to statistical infor­
mation by ensuring the approximation of methods and a 
common basis for concepts, definitions and standards 
while taking account of the specific nature of each 
statistical system, 
NOTES the objectives and the guidelines of the statistical 
programme, as defined in the Annex, 
TAKES NOTE of the procedures for financing the 
statistical programme, as defined in the Annex, NOTES that the Statistical Programme Committee of the 
European Communities, created by Decision 
89/. . ./EEC, has an essential role to play in the 
implementation of the 1989 to 1992 statistical 
programme and the preparation of future statistical 
programmes, 
CALLS ON the various authorities in the Member States, 
in cooperation with the Commission, to adopt such 
measures as are necessary to take account of the stat­
istical programme and its implementation in formulating 
their national programmes, 
REQUESTS the Commission to submit a final report on 
the implementation of the statistical programme before 
1 June 1993. 
^ D ^ C^ffici^l]ourn^lofrli^Euro^^nC^ornrnunin^ l^oC^^tB^ 
t. Objecr^ves 
The obiectives of the statistical programme are^ 
t. to speed up the development of the statistical infrastructure which is necessary for the proper 
operation of the internal marl^et^ 
^. to extend the scope of Community statistics to cover new areas of policy and of public interests 
3. to permit the assessment of Community policies and the effective management of the related 
budgetary resources by developing reliable and uptodate information at the necessary geographical 
levels^ 
^t. to promote the adoption of European statistical standards^ 
^. to construct an integrated European system built on national systems^ 
^. to contribute towards the development ofashared statistical language that will foster progress in the 
statistical sciences^ so as to increase the knowledge of demographics economic and social realities in 
all member states. 
The statistical programme is based on the following principles which are designed to reinforce 
cooperation between the Community ^urostat^ and member states ^national statistical institutes^. 
t. thecharacteristics of each statistical systemaretobetal^en into consideration inthedefinitionand 
application of Community statistical worl^ 
^. statistical worl^ofaCommunity nature shall receive Community supportmn so far as is possibles 
3. the statistical systems of the weakest countries shall receive technical support fromthe Commission 
and from the strongest countriesmn so far as is possibles 
^t. requests for statistics made by the Commission to^vtember^tates^statistical institutes shall be coor 
dinated by ^urostat before being passed to the national statistical institutes^ 
^. the development of requests for statistical information relating to the activities of individuals and 
enterprises shall be accompanied by efforts to reduce or to limit the burden of replying. 
The statistical programme comprisesaset of sectoral programmes intended to^ 
— consolidate existing Community proiects^current activities^ 
— process data in accordance with more efficient methods ^restructured proiects^ 
— create new information ^newproiects^. 
The statistical programme covers the period r^ to t^^ and will be carried out on the basis of 
multiannual programming^ which will be developed in the content of the consultation procedures 
implemented by the Commission. 
^orl^one^isting Community proiects will have tobe carried forwardin coniunction withperiodic 
reviewsof itsrelevanceandusefulness.Thismayentailfree^ingordiscontinuinge^istingoperations 
whichare outdatedor have ceased tobeadvantageous incostBbenefitterms. ^Cewandrestructured 
proiects will have to be either completed within the period t^^tot^^ Or prepared as regards metho 
dology and feasibility and carried out progressively within time limits compatible with their usefulness 
and the resources available. 
^. ^ith a view to achieving the obiectives of the single European ^ct^ it will be necessary to 
implement sectoral programmes designed to^ 
No C 161/4 Official Journal of the European Communities 28. 6. 89 
(a) assess the reliability and comparability of Member States' systems of drawing up economic 
accounts and decide what improvements are necessary for the assessment of GNP as an 
additional basis for financing the Community budget; 
(b) create a new system for collecting statistics on intra-Community trade to replace the existing 
system, which is scheduled to disappear following the abolition of internal frontiers and 
frontier controls, so that the provision of statistical information remains close to present levels; 
(c) produce sufficiently reliable and rapidly available information to facilitate decision-making in 
the management of the common agricultural policy, and the monitoring and assessment of such 
decisions; 
(d) improve the quality and availability of the statistical indicators designed to define and measure 
the impact of the policies and programmes financed by the Structural Funds. 
B. Progress must also be made in the short term in improving statistical information in the following 
areas: 
(a) trade in services; such information is vital for the international trade negotiations in which the 
Community is involved; 
(b) industrial and service enterprises (including tourism) in order to ensure the transparency and 
monitoring of changes in the internal market, and to prepare, monitor and evaluate 
Community programmes in this field, while developing more modern and rapid means of 
collecting and using data, with a view to alleviating the burden on enterprises; 
(c) the main monetary and financial variables, with a view to strengthening the European 
Monetary System and the use of the ecu; 
(d) the environment, in oder to achieve the objectives set by the Single European Act; and 
(e) the European social area, in order to provide the statistical back-up for programmes to improve 
the living and working conditions of citizens. 
C. It will also be necessary to prepare the methodological and feasibility aspects of sectoral statistical 
programmes intended to supplement existing back-up information for the priority policies in the 
sectors covered by the statistical programme and to implement those programmes gradually. 
D. Furthermore, the Commission will have to: 
(a) support and strengthen the statistical infrastructure of those Member States for which the 
accelerating process of integration is particularly burdensome; 
(b) establish the means by which private and public sector economic operators will be able to draw 
on the statistical information thus generated, for the better management of their activities, in a 
cost-effective manner and with the use of the appropriate technologies; 
(c) promote the development of the statistical systems of non-member countries, within the context 
of the development policy pursued by the Community; 
(d) develop a programme for the exchange of reliable and relevant statistical information with 
other European countries, including State-trading countries, and their intergovernmental 
organizations. 
IV. Areas 
In order to achieve the objectives referred to in Part I, the statistical programme — which will be 
carried out in liaison with the national statistical institutes and other appropriate bodies of the Member 
States — will have to provide the information needed to implement Community policies, in particular: 
1. The Single European Act 
1.1. The internal market 
1.2. Economic and monetary union 
Social policy 
28. 6. 89 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 161/5 
Economic and social cohesion 
Technological research and development 
Environment 
2. Other Community policies 
2.1. Agriculture 
2.2. Fisheries 
2.3. Industry 
2.4. Energy 
2.5. Transport, tourism and other services 
2.6. External relations 
2.7. Development cooperation 
3. Functioning of the Community 
3.1. Own resources 
3.2. Information policy 
4. Functioning of the Institutions 
4.1. Infrastructure 
4.2. Staff management 
The statistical programme will comprise a series of sectoral programmes covering the following areas: 
— economic and financial accounts and prices, 
— statistics on international trade and non-member countries, 
— business statistics, 
— social and regional statistics, 
— statistics on agriculture, fisheries and the environment, 
— statistical informatics and dissemination. 
V. Organization 
The statistical programme includes some measures which have a basis in existing Community acts and 
procedures. Other acts and procedures will be necessary in order to achieve the objectives set out in 
section I. To this end the Commission will take the necessary steps, assisted by the Statistical 
Programme Committee of the European Communities, without prejudice to the competence of 
committees in existence when this resolution is adopted. 
In order to accelerate and simplify the decision-making procedures, any new statistical work to be 
undertaken shall, as far as possible, be the subject of Council instruments conferring the appropriate 
executive powers on the Commission, assisted by the Statistical Programme Committee, in accordance 
with procedures to be adopted in line with Decision 87/373/EEC ('). 
VI. Finance 
Action to be taken in the implementation of the statistical programme will be financed at Community 
level by appropriations from the general budget of the European Communities, Chapter 76. Within 
this context the Community will, if necessary, lend support to measures effected in the Member States, 
where their purpose is to furnish the statistical information needed for the implementation, monitoring 
or evaluation of Community policies. 
The annual amounts will be decided in the context of the annual budgetary procedure. 
(') OJ No L 197, 18. 7. 1987, p. 33.