WRITTEN QUESTION E-0138/01 by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission. Timeliness of economic statistics.
Date: 2001-01-31
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Eurostat, economic statistics, euro area, gross national product, statistical method

3.7.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 187 E/193

In Europe, it was estimated that in 1996, 1 in 6 people in the labour force changed job, and just over 1‰%
of the working age population moved between NUTS2 (1) regions. Inter-regional migration is much higher
in the northern Member States where it averages 2 % or more, than in the southern ones, where it is below
1 %. Young people in their 20s are by far the most mobile (aged between 15 and 24 in the Netherlands
and the United Kingdom) and mobility declines markedly with age.

The United States Census Bureau reports that in 1999, 43 million United States residents (15,9 % of the
population) moved to a new residence. This is the lowest figure since these statistics were collected. 59 %
moved within the same county, 20 % moved to a different county in the same state, 18 % of movers
moved to another state.

The Japanese statistical office reports that in 1999 the number of Japanese internal migrants was 6,1
million persons, a rate of internal migration of 4,93 %. This represented a fall of 1,4 % in comparison to
earlier years, the fourth successive annual decline since the data collection began in 1954.

(1) NUTS (Nomenclature des UnitØs Territoriales et Statistiques).

(2001/C 187 E/207)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0137/01

by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission

(31 January 2001)

Subject: Legislative discussions

Will the Commission, as a participant in Council of Ministers(cid:146) meetings,
opening up such meetings to the press and the public when legislative matters are under discussion?

indicate whether it favours

Answer given by Mr Prodi on behalf of the Commission

(5 March 2001)

As to the substance of the question, the Honourable Member is referred to the answer to his Written
Question E-0134/01 (1). It should be pointed out that, while the Commission is invited to take part in
Council meetings (Article 5 of the Council(cid:146)s Rules of Procedure), it does not do so as a member.

(1) OJ C 174 E, 19.6.2001, p. 255.

(2001/C 187 E/208)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0138/01

by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission

(31 January 2001)

Subject: Timeliness of economic statistics

Given the long delays before several Member States publish quarterly estimates of their national accounts
(cid:129) see the answer of 22 December to Written Question E-3426/00 (1) (cid:129) what proportion of EU and euro-
area GDP is generally taken into account when Eurostat publishes its first estimates of GDP growth in
a quarter?

(1) OJ C 151 E, 22.5.2001.

C 187 E/194

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

3.7.2001

Answer given by Mr Solbes Mira on behalf of the Commission

(15 March 2001)

Eurostat calculates the first estimates of quarterly gross domestic product (GDP) for the euro zone and the
15 Member States three times per quarter in accordance with the following schedule:

(cid:129) an initial estimate covering at least 75 % of GDP is made within 70 days after the end of the reference

quarter;

(cid:129) a second estimate covering 90 % is made after 100 days;

(cid:129) a third estimate covering 95 % is made after 120 days.

(2001/C 187 E/209)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0139/01

by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission

(31 January 2001)

Subject: Timeliness of economic statistics

Given that the statistics for GDP, employment and productivity for the euro area are taken into account
largely by the foreign exchange market when assessing the value of the euro against the dollar and the yen,
and given that
the
Commission please state the frequency and actual time-lag between the period concerned and publication
of national output, employment, productivity and earnings figures in the United States of America, Canada
and Japan?

therefore compete with the figures produced for other areas, will

they must

Answer given by Mr Solbes Mira on behalf of the Commission

(3 April 2001)

A table that gives the release dates for the United States of America, Japan and Canada for the key statistics
mentioned in the question is sending direct to the Honourable Member and to Parliament(cid:146)s Secretariat.

The Commission, in full awareness of the attention devoted by foreign exchange markets to statistics such
as the gross domestic product (GDP), employment or productivity, is concerned about the fact that euro
area statistics are, in most cases, released later than in the United States, Japan and Canada. Therefore the
Commission and the European Central Bank have recently jointly proposed an action plan, which was
subsequently approved by the Ecofin Council. The implementation of this plan should lead to improve-
ments in the data collection and statistics compilation in the National Statistical Institutes of the Member
States as well as in the Statistical Office of the European Communities (Eurostat). These improvements will
make a faster release of these key statistics possible.

(2001/C 187 E/210)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0145/01

by Toine Manders (ELDR) and Jules Maaten (ELDR) to the Commission

Subject: Inflammable clothing

(31 January 2001)

A terrible fire at a cafe bar in Volendam in the Netherlands recently cost ten people their lives as well as
endangering the lives of dozens of others or leaving them permanently disfigured. One of the causes of the
fire was the presence of dangerous, inflammable products, including clothing. In response to the incident,
the Dutch clothing industry announced that it would be taking voluntary steps to indicate on the labels of
clothing the inflammability of the material used.