Opinion of the European Central Bank of 19 March 2010 on an amendment to the Law on Danmarks Nationalbank regarding authority to collect information for the compilation of statistics (CON/2010/24)
Date: 2010-03-19
Institutions: European Central Bank
Subjects: Denmark, central bank, data collection, national law, statistics

EN 

OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 

of 19 March 2010 

on an amendment to the Law on Danmarks Nationalbank regarding authority to collect 

information for the compilation of statistics 

(CON/2010/24) 

Introduction and legal basis 

On  2  March  2010  the  European  Central  Bank  (ECB)  received  a  request  from  the  Danish  Ministry  of 

Economic and Business Affairs for an opinion on a proposal for a law to amend the Law on Danmarks 

Nationalbank (authorisation for the collection of data for use in compiling statistics) (hereinafter the ‘draft 

law’). 

The ECB’s competence to deliver an opinion is based on Articles 127(4) and 282(5) of the Treaty on the 

Functioning of the European Union and the third and fourth indents of Article 2(1) of Council Decision 

98/415/EC  of  29 June  1998  on  the  consultation  of  the  European  Central  Bank  by  national  authorities 
regarding  draft  legislative  provisions1,  as  the  draft  law  relates  to  Danmarks  Nationalbank  and  to  the 

collection, compilation and distribution of monetary, financial, banking, payment systems and balance of 

payments statistics. In accordance with the first sentence of Article 17.5 of the Rules of Procedure of the 

European Central Bank, the Governing Council has adopted this opinion. 

1. 

Purpose of the draft law 

1.1  The  purpose  of  the  draft  law  is  to  give  direct  authority  to  Danmarks  Nationalbank  to  collect, 

compile  and  publish  statistical  information  within  its  fields  of  competence,  and  to  use  such 

information as necessary for the fulfilment of its tasks, including for non-statistical purposes.  

1.2  The draft law enables Denmark to comply with the extended statistical  requirements for national 

central  banks  (NCBs)  pursuant  to  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  951/2009  of  9  October  2009 

amending Regulation (EC) No 2533/98 concerning the collection of statistical information by the 
European Central Bank2 and the regulation on the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB) when it 
is adopted3, as well as meeting the national needs of Danmarks Nationalbank. At present Danmarks 

1  
2  

3  

OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42.  
OJ L 269, 14.10.2009, p. 1. This applies, e.g., in the field of macro-prudential statistics and the structural developments in 
the financial markets. 
Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on Community macro prudential oversight of 
the financial system and establishing a European Systemic Risk Board (COM(2009) 499 final). 

 
 
 
 
                                                 
Nationalbank carries out statistical tasks under powers delegated by Statistics Denmark pursuant to 
§3(3) of the Law on Statistics Denmark4.  

1.3  Furthermore, the draft law authorises Danmarks  Nationalbank to distribute confidential statistical 

information to the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) and to the ESRB to the extent and in 

such detail (including information enabling an individual financial institution to be identified) as is 

necessary for these institutions to perform their tasks.  

1.4 

In addition, the scope of reporting agents from which Danmarks Nationalbank will be allowed to 

collect information is extended to encompass all legal and natural persons operating in the financial 

field, including issuers and holders of securities, those engaged in trans-border activities, as well as 

clearing and settlement institutions. 

2. 

General observations  

The ECB welcomes the draft law, which provides direct authority for the independent statistical function 

of Danmarks Nationalbank. The ECB notes that there are two complementary regimes for the production 
of European statistics, one set out in Regulation (EC) No 223/20095 and the other in Council Regulation 

(EC)  No  2533/98  of  23  November  1998  concerning  the  collection  of  statistical  information  by  the 
European Central Bank6. Whatever the national regime, the specific arrangements should aim to optimise 

the  quality  and  availability  of  official  statistics,  also  in  the  context  of  the  NCB’s  participation  in  the 

ESCB  in  general  and  its  duty  to  collaborate  with  the  ECB  on  statistical  matters  in  particular,  while 

preserving its independence as a central bank participating in the ESCB.  

This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website.  

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 19 March 2010. 

[signed] 

The President of the ECB 

Jean-Claude TRICHET 

4  

5  

6  

§3(3) of the Law on Statistics Denmark (Consolidated Act No 599 of 22 June 2000) delegates the collection of statistics 
in  the  financial  field,  together  with  the  right  to  impose  sanctions  for  non-compliance,  as  follows:  ‘In  agreement  with 
Danmarks Nationalbank, the Board may delegate to Danmarks Nationalbank the collection, compilation and distribution 
of  statistics  within  the  field  of  finance.  The  Board  can  likewise  instruct  financial  undertakings  to  submit  to  Danmarks 
Nationalbank, at its request, the information referred to in § 8(1) No 3’. 
Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2009 on European statistics 
and  repealing  Regulation  (EC,  Euratom)  No  1101/2008  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  on  the 
transmission of data subject to statistical confidentiality to the Statistical Office of the European Communities, Council 
Regulation  (EC)  No  322/97  on  Community  Statistics,  and  Council  Decision  89/382/EEC,  Euratom  establishing  a 
Committee on the Statistical Programmes of the European Communities (OJ L 87, 31.3.2009, p. 164). 
OJ L 318, 27.11.1998, p. 8. 

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