Explanatory Memorandum to COM(2016)786 - Integrated farm statistics - Main contents
Please note
This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.
| dossier | COM(2016)786 - Integrated farm statistics. |
|---|---|
| source | COM(2016)786  |
| date | 09-12-2016 |
1. CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL
• Reasons for and objectives of the proposal
Policy makers require supplementary statistical information on agriculture in order to plan, monitor and evaluate the impact and efficiency of current policies and their potential changes. Such changes are e.g. related to the impact of agriculture on the environment and to sustainable farming practices. An evaluation of the European Agricultural Statistics System (EASS) concluded that even if the main users of agricultural statistics are quite satisfied with the level of detail and quality of the agricultural statistics, they are not content with the lack of data on specific items (supply balance sheets, land prices and rents, nutrient flows, data related to environment, and others), and that the system is too rigid, not allowing the rapid introduction of new data collections.
Agricultural statistics used at the Union level are taken from a variety of sources: statistical surveys, administrative data, data from farms and other businesses, as well as farm level data in the form of an agricultural census and samples. The current proposal relates to that last source of agricultural statistics data.
The current system for producing European statistics at farm and agricultural household level is based on Regulation (EC) 1166/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council 1 . The data are collected from samples and every ten years from a census. The last of the surveys carried out in the framework of that regulation is the Farm Structure Survey (FSS) in 2016.
This initiative is part of the Regulatory Fitness and Performance Programme (REFIT) and is the first step of the Strategy for Agricultural Statistics 2020 and beyond, that aims at streamlining the EASS as a whole and to render the data collection process more efficient and relevant. The two proposed Regulations in the strategy, of which the first one is proposed in this document, should guarantee the comparability and consistency of the agricultural data in the long run. The EASS should be sufficiently robust and efficient, and should ensure that the high quality of statistics is maintained – which can be challenging given the continual change in this area. This first regulation should ensure continuation of the series of European farm structure surveys, thus ensuring consistent time series, while fulfilling new and emerging needs for data at farm level.
• Consistency with existing policy provisions in the policy area
It is necessary for statistics to be reliable and of high quality in order for policymakers, businesses and the general public to be able to take appropriate evidence-based decisions. Providing statistics of that quality is, however, challenging for the European Statistical System (ESS): the ever-increasing demand for data and pressure from respondents to statistical surveys to reduce the burden combine to put pressure on the production of statistics. Recent statistical initiatives have, subsequently, aimed to simplify and improve coordination and collaboration within the ESS, with a view to making the production of European statistics more efficient and reducing the burden on respondents. One example is Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 2 on European statistics which was amended in 2015 to clarify the governance of the ESS and to strengthen means of coordination and collaboration at both the Union and national level. Other modernisation initiatives, such as this proposal, are included in the Commission's REFIT initiative and aim to simplify and streamline the production of European statistics within targeted domains.
A strategy on agricultural statistics that has been drafted by Eurostat and agreed with the European Statistical System Committee (ESSC) has as specific objectives to:
• produce high-quality statistics that meet users' needs efficiently and effectively;
• increase the flexibility and reaction speed of the agricultural statistics system;
• improve the integration between agricultural, forestry, land use and environmental statistics;
• develop a responsive and responsible governance structure for agricultural statistics;
• improve the harmonisation and coherence of European agricultural statistics;
• produce more statistics while lowering the burden on respondents by exploring alternative data sources and possibilities of efficiency improvement.
• Consistency with other Union policies
Provision of quality statistics to support European policies is the main driver of the European Statistical Programme 2013-2017. Environmental and agricultural statistics are one of the three pillars of statistical production under that programme. Among the relevant objectives of the programme is 'the review and simplification of the agricultural data collection in line with the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) review post-2013 and the redesign of the agricultural data collection processes, in particular with the objective of improving the quality and timeliness of the provided data.' This initiative implements that objective.
Contents
The future European Agricultural Statistics System will also contribute to at least four of the ten priorities of the Commission, namely
• '1. A new boost for jobs, growth and investment';
• '3. A resilient energy union with a forward-looking climate change policy';
• '4. A deeper and fairer internal market with a strengthened industrial base'; and
• '9. A stronger global actor';
by providing better data for job, growth, investment, prevention and mitigation policies in agriculture, climate change, bio-energy and environmental actions, and a deeper understanding of global food flows, developments and risks, respectively. Agricultural statistics may also be useful to other Union or Member State priorities affecting or affected by agriculture and rural development.
Agricultural statistics provide high-quality statistical evidence for the implementation and monitoring of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 2014-2020. The CAP is an important driver for jobs and smart, sustainable and inclusive growth in the Union. The rural development policy, being an integral part of the CAP, on top of its social objectives aims to improve the competitiveness and sustainability of agricultural production. The CAP represents more than 37% of the Union total budget in the context of the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2014-2020.
Agricultural statistics are also increasingly needed for other key Union policies like social policy, environmental and climate change policies, trade policy, regional policy etc.
2. LEGAL BASIS, SUBSIDIARITY AND PROPORTIONALITY
• Legal basis
Article 338 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) provides the legal basis for European statistics. Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, the European Parliament and the Council adopt measures for the production of statistics where this is necessary for the Union to carry out its role. Article 338 sets out the requirements relating to the production of European statistics, stating that they must conform to standards of impartiality, reliability, objectivity, scientific independence, cost-effectiveness and statistical confidentiality.
• Subsidiarity (for non-exclusive competence)
The subsidiarity principle applies insofar as the proposal does not fall within the exclusive competence of the Union. The ESS provides an infrastructure for statistical information. The system is designed to meet the needs of multiple users, for the purpose of decision-making in democratic societies. The proposal for this Regulation has been drafted with a view to protecting core activities of ESS partners while improving efficiency and ensuring that unnecessary changes and duplication of work are avoided as far as possible.
The collection of statistics covered by the proposal currently takes place according to different rules at the Union level. The proposal intends to streamline and modernise the collection of farm-level statistics under one framework while all other agricultural statistics would be included in another framework regulation. It is only possible to provide Union-wide, comparable statistics for policy purposes by acting at the Union level.
One of the main criteria that the statistical data must meet is to be consistent and comparable. The Member States cannot achieve the necessary consistency and comparability without a clear European framework, that is to say, Union legislation laying down the common statistical concepts, reporting formats and quality requirements.
The objective of the proposed action, namely streamlining European agricultural statistics, cannot be achieved satisfactorily by the Member States acting independently. Action can be taken more effectively at the Union level, on the basis of a Union legal act ensuring the comparability of statistical information at the Union level in the statistical domains covered by the proposed act. The data collection itself, meanwhile, can be carried out by the Member States.
The Union may therefore adopt measures in this area in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union.
• Proportionality
The proposal complies with the proportionality principle, in view of the following:
It will ensure the quality and comparability of European agricultural statistics collected from samples by applying the same principles across Member States. Similarly, it will ensure that European agricultural statistics remain relevant and are adapted to respond to user needs. The Regulation will make the production of statistics more cost-effective while respecting the specificities of Member States' systems.
Current Union legislation concerning agricultural statistics has been developed since the 1950s. An evaluation of the European Agricultural Statistics System (EASS) has shown that a common framework for the process of collecting, processing and disseminating statistical data in agriculture can make the processes more efficient (cost/benefit) and effective, and reduce identified quality issues.
The Regulation is expected to reduce the financial and administrative burden placed on respondents, national, regional and local authorities, businesses, and the general public. It will do so in particular by: standardising concepts and methods, removing duplications, reducing the frequency with which data have to be provided in some areas, and making greater use of a combination of sources in addition to surveys.
In accordance with the principle of proportionality, the proposed Regulation confines itself to the minimum required to achieve its objective and does not go beyond what is necessary for that purpose.
• Choice of the instrument
Proposed instrument: a Regulation.
Given the objectives and content of the proposal, a Regulation is the most appropriate instrument. Important common EU policies such as the CAP inherently depend on comparable, harmonised and high-quality agricultural statistics at European level. These can best be ensured by Regulations, which are directly applicable in Member States and do not need to be transposed into national law first. They allow the collection of data at the same level of detail in all Member States and impose the application of common standards, definitions and methodologies. This ensures the production of high quality comparable statistics at the service of EU policies in an efficient and timely manner. Directives would not be able to ensure a similar level of the desired harmonisation, as data quality would depend on 28 different legislatures' decisions.
3. RESULTS OF EX-POST EVALUATIONS, STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATIONS AND IMPACT ASSESSMENTS
• Ex-post evaluations/fitness checks of existing legislation
Although this initiative was launched prior to the adoption of the new Better Regulation guidelines (COM(2015) 215), an evaluation of the current situation was made, based on already available information and documentation. In addition, Eurostat’s standard system for evaluating existing legislation 3 formed a central part of the whole process.
• Stakeholder consultations
The development, production and dissemination of European agricultural statistics is achieved by Eurostat through close, coordinated and regular cooperation in the European Statistical System, building upon a long partnership between Eurostat and the NSIs as well as all other relevant authorities.
The main categories of stakeholders of European agricultural statistics are data producers (NSIs and ONAs as well as Eurostat), respondents (farmers, farmers' organisations and businesses) and users (public and private decision makers, in particular other Commission DGs; researchers and journalists). They have been consulted extensively on problems and desired changes in the status quo, their data needs and priorities, possible policy options to solve the problems, impacts of suggested actions, and the formulation of the strategy specifically, as the following overview table shows. The main fora for these consultations have been the meetings and seminars of the Standing Committee for Agricultural Statistics (CPSA) and its successor, the Directors' Group for Agricultural Statistics (DGAS) (for NSI directors of agricultural statistics, international organisations, farmers' organisations, data respondents, data users and others), ESSC meetings (for NSI directors-general), and regularly scheduled consultations and hearings (for Commission DGs).
| Consultation on problems and changes | Consultation on needs and priorities | Consultation on options and impacts | |
| Producers | ESSC Meeting May 2014 | CPSA Meetings and Seminars since 2009 | DGAS Meeting July 2015, ESSC Meeting November 2015 |
| Respondents | CPSA Seminars since 2009 | Open public consultation August-November 2015 | |
| Users | Open public consultation August-November 2015 Written consultations and hearings since 2014 |
The open public consultation was carried out during August-November 2015, and the results are detailed in a specific report 4 .
The main results of the above consultations, forming the core of the agricultural statistics strategy 2020 and subsequently of this regulation, are threefold:
• The current Union agricultural statistics legislation does not adequately serve new and emerging data needs because their provision is not included in the legislative acts, and the acts are not flexible and integrated enough to answer to new needs in a timely manner. Moreover, Regulation (EC) No 1166/2008 which is a central piece in the current overall EASS will cease to provide any statistical information as of 2018.
These new data needs mainly stem from new developments in agriculture, revised legislation and changing policy priorities, in particular the recently reformed CAP.
• The data collections are not harmonised and coherent because new data needs are emerging, legislation has been developed separately over many years, and partly different definitions and concepts are used in different agricultural statistics areas.
• The burden of providing data is perceived as too high because data needs are increasing, data collection is not harmonised, and resources continue to shrink at the Union and national level. That burden was confirmed as jeopardising data collection and data quality.
• Collection and use of expertise
Eurostat has held extensive discussions on the proposal with the NSIs. It set up working groups, task forces, and directors' groups, which met regularly to consult on the proposal. The proposal has also been presented to the European Statistical System Committee set up by Regulation (EC) No 223/2009.
• Impact assessment
This proposal is accompanied by an impact assessment. It identifies the problems currently being faced, presents a number of policy options that could be used to address those problems, and assesses the social and economic impact of each of the options.
The Regulatory Scrutiny Board gave a positive opinion of the impact assessment in March 2016.
The impact assessment identified three main factors underlying the problems being faced in the area of the EASS:
new and emerging data needs not adequately served;
data collections not sufficiently harmonised and coherent;
burden of providing data perceived as too high.
The following options were assessed as ways of addressing the identified issues.
| Option | Description |
| 1. Baseline – no Union action on structural data of agriculture | If no Union action is taken, the result would be that Regulation (EC) No 1166/2008 will expire and the collection of structural data on agriculture will remain at the discretion of Member States. The other agricultural statistics legislation would remain in place as it is today, but with less assurance of quality as an agricultural census is often used to update farm registers that are used for stratification in sample surveys. |
| 2. Prolongation of Regulation (EC) No 1166/2008 | Renewal of Regulation (EC) No 1166/2008 which expires by 2018. This would mean that the current system, in force since 1966, would continue without integrating changes. The other agricultural statistics legislation would remain in place, and the status quo would continue. |
| 3. Single legal framework for all agricultural statistics | Creation of a completely new legal framework for all Union agricultural statistics. All legislation related to agricultural statistics would be integrated into one single framework regulation. |
| 4. Two-step integration of agricultural statistics | A two-step integration of agricultural statistics would safeguard the continuation and modernisation of structural statistics on agriculture. Two new framework regulations would be introduced stepwise: an integrated farm statistics (IFS) regulation and another framework regulation on statistics on agricultural input and output (SAIO). |
Following a detailed assessment of the impacts of the different options, the following conclusions were reached:
Option 1 "Baseline" offers the worst outcomes in almost all dimensions, particularly in the long term as data needs and resource constraints become even more urgent. Option 2 'Prolongation' offers only limited value in the short term and severely damages the functioning of the EASS in the long term as it becomes more outdated and cumbersome. Options 3 'One framework regulation' and 4 'Two-step integration', while requiring some initial investments and new EU Regulations, offer the best chances to achieve the objectives formulated earlier in a cost-efficient manner, present the comparatively lowest risks, have the most positive indirect impacts, and best satisfy stakeholders' requirements. They also fulfil the REFIT initiative's goals of updating the Union legislation to increase its cost-benefit ratio and reduce the burden on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Option 4 also has the added benefits of presenting less timing risk in the legislative process (as a new agricultural census regulation needs to be adopted by the Council and the Parliament at the latest by the end of 2018) and being slightly more flexible due to a less unwieldy legislative architecture. Therefore, Eurostat prefers option 4 over option 3.
The main stakeholders of the EASS, i.e. the Commission as data user, the NSIs and ONAs as data producers, and farmers as data respondents also prefer option 4.
• Regulatory fitness and simplification
The REFIT objective of the proposal is to make best possible use of the information provided, and to meet the current and future needs for European agricultural statistics while limiting the response burden. Those goals will be achieved by bringing the various European statistical data collection exercises, which are currently covered by separate regulations, under one framework.
Details of the reduction of costs for data producers and providers, calculated based on model scenarios, can be found in the impact assessment (section 5 'Impact Analysis' and Annex IV: 'Impact analysis methodology').
The proposal aims to reduce the burden on micro-enterprises and for SMEs by raising the survey thresholds.
The proposal promotes interoperability and reusability of the supporting information and communication technology by making use of:
• The same technical specifications for data sets. The specifications will include the number and description of variables; the statistical classifications; the characteristics of the statistical populations, the observation units and the respondents; the reference periods and dates; and the requirements relating to geographical coverage, sample features, technical aspects of the field work editing and imputation, weighting, estimation and variance estimation.
• The same standards for submitting data and exchanging and sharing information between Eurostat and the Member States. The standards will cover concepts, processes and products, including data and metadata.
Where the quality of data complies with the quality criteria given in Article 12(1) of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009, Member States should be able to provide data from several sources including methods or innovative approaches in so far as they ensure the production of data that are comparable and compliant with the specific requirements laid down by the Regulation.
• Fundamental rights
The proposal has no consequences for the protection of fundamental rights. The most relevant considerations for this proposal are the possible effects on personal data protection (for which the rights are laid down by Article 8 of the Union Charter of Fundamental Rights, Article 16 TFEU and in secondary legislation 5 ). None of the selected policy options, however, envisages a change in provisions on personal data protection. National and Union legislation on statistics provides for NSIs to guarantee the protection of data. They have strong policies in place for, for example, safeguarding respondent confidentiality, anonymizing records and protecting replies to questionnaires.
4. BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS
The proposal has a financial impact for the years 2019 to 2020 (with possible financial impact extended up to 2028 depending on the next MFF).
The total appropriations under the current MFF are estimated at EUR 40 million. Detailed budgetary implications are set out in the legislative financial statement.
5. OTHER ELEMENTS
• Implementation plans and monitoring, evaluation and reporting arrangements
The proposed Regulation is expected to be adopted by the European Parliament and the Council in 2017, with the adoption of implementing measures by the Commission to follow shortly afterwards.
Member States are expected to start providing data to the Commission under the new Regulation in 2022.
The proposed legislative instrument is part of the EASS that will be subject to a complete evaluation in order to assess, amongst other things, how effective and efficient it has been in terms of achieving the objectives and to decide on whether new measures or amendments are needed.
• Annual compliance monitoring of the statistics produced
Eurostat conducts annual compliance assessments. Those assessments include a review of the data availability, quality and punctuality and follow-up actions in case of non-compliance.
In accordance with the requirements of the Union legislation, Member States are requested to provide the Commission with relevant figures on agricultural statistics. Those figures are subject to strict transmission deadlines which must be respected for the good management, dissemination and usefulness of the Union statistics, as missing or incomplete data lead to shortcomings in the availability of information (that is to say, it is not possible to calculate Union aggregates and to publish data according to planned time schedules).
Regulation (EC) No 223/2009, which is the basic legal framework for the functioning of the European Statistical System and for all sectoral legislation for the production of European statistics, has been amended on 29 April 2015.
While timeliness, punctuality and completeness are already important factors in the annual compliance assessments to ensure a timely dissemination of agriculture statistics, more attention will be paid to those and other quality dimensions in order to ensure confidence in the statistics produced by the ESS.
• Continuous improvement of the EASS: identification of new data needs and new data sources, improvement of coherence, reduction of burden
At present, Eurostat conducts annual hearings with other services of the Commission. An important point for those hearings is the exchange of information on the respective work programmes. They provide a formal platform for stating upcoming needs for new statistics, and to review the usefulness of the available statistics.
Further collaboration with other Commission services, NSIs and ONAs will take place at different hierarchical levels in regular Working Group meetings and seminars, Directors' Group meetings, ESSC meetings, and through frequent bilateral exchanges. Particular attention will be focused on the identification of administrative data and other information sources maintained under the Union legislation and the assessment of their suitability for the production of statistics in order to establish agreements for their stability, accessibility and eventual adaptation to better fit statistical requirements. Furthermore, periodic surveys and analyses will be conducted to identify potential for improvement of European agricultural statistics and for burden reduction, for example by abolishing variables with a low cost-benefit ratio. The new, more flexible legal framework will make adjustments possible.
Those adjustments and the overall functioning of the legal framework will be monitored and evaluated in particular against the strategy objectives listed earlier.
• Triennial monitoring reports
In order to monitor the functioning of the renewed EASS and to ensure its fulfilment of the REFIT goals of simplification and burden reduction, a regular reporting on the functioning of the overall system will be carried out every three years.
• Evaluation
The second triennial monitoring report will be replaced by a retrospective evaluation of the renewed EASS, conducted according to the Commission's evaluation guidelines. It could also constitute a basis for further revisions of the legislation, if deemed necessary.
• Detailed explanation of the specific provisions of the proposal
The proposed Regulation consists of 19 Articles and five Annexes.
As set out in article 1, the purpose of the Regulation is to establish a framework for European agricultural statistics at farm level and to provide for integration of the structural information with other information, such as production methods, rural development measures, agro-environmental aspects and others. The main definitions are described in Article 2. The scope and coverage are described in Article 3. The proposal allows and promotes the use of new forms of data collection and alternative data sources including administrative data and other sources (Article 4).
The statistics covered by the Regulation are referred to in Articles 5, 6 and 7 for specific reference years and periods (Article 10). It is proposed to empower the Commission to adopt delegated acts to amend the core characteristics listed in Annex III (Article 5), restricted to alignment with administrative registers, and the detailed topics for the modules listed in Annex IV (Article 8) in order to adapt the data collected to future users’ needs; and to meet specific user requirements in ad-hoc surveys (Article 9).
The Commission should also be empowered to adopt implementing measures on the technical specifications required for the data sets (Article 8) and the quality reporting (Article 11). The requirements relating to quality reporting are in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 223/2009, which provides a reference framework and requires Member States to comply with the statistical principles and quality criteria specified in that Regulation.
The data must be transmitted within predefined deadlines (Article 12).
The draft regulation includes the provisions for financial support to the Member States (Articles 13 and 14) for:
• complying with data requirements and developing methodologies aiming at higher quality or lower costs, or both, and the administrative burden of collecting and producing integrated farm statistics;
• the cost of data collections;
• the collection of ad-hoc data.
In addition, the Regulation contains the required provisions on the protection of the financial interests of the Union (Article 15), and on the exercise of the delegation of power (Article 16).
The final Articles refer to the Committee procedure (Article 17) and to the repeal of two existing Regulations that will be replaced in full by the Regulation (Article 18).
The five Annexes set out the detailed information on the livestock unit coefficients, the list of the physical thresholds, the list of characteristics for the core structural data, the characteristics to be covered in the modules, and the requirements related to accuracy.