Changes from adopted text to adopted text

Removed(21) In recent years, comprehensive Union level databases and interoperability systems related to residence, vital events, citizenship and migratory and cross-border movements of population such as those established by Regulations (EU) No 910/2014, (EU) 2018/1724, (EU) 2019/817 and (EU) 2019/818 of the European Parliament and of the Council have been developed. They provide valuable information that can be re-used for the compilation and quality assurance of European statistics on population and housing.

Removed(22) In that respect, it is essential to enable the Commission (Eurostat) to re-use those data for statistical purposes only subject to strictly applying rules of data protection and data privacy pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council. This should apply in particular to the statistical data stored in the central repository for reporting and statistics (CRRS) in accordance with the purpose of the CRRS set out in Article 39(1) of Regulation (EU) 2019/817 as well as in Article 39(1) of Regulation (EU) 2019/818 and in accordance with the Regulations establishing the systems whose statistical data is stored in the CRRS. In particular, considering that the CRRS is to provide cross-system statistical data and analytical reporting for policy, operational and data quality purposes, the Commission (Eurostat) should cooperate with the European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (eu-LISA), to the extent possible, with a view to providing the required European statistics.

Removed(23) Privately held data refers to the vast amount of data held by private entities obtained as a result of their activity, which could be used by statistical authorities and the Commission (Eurostat) to produce official statistics. Such data can improve the coverage, timeliness and crisis response capacities of European statistics on population and housing or ▌ enable statistical innovation. Such data have the potential to complement existing demography and migration statistics, bring statistical innovation and even serve for production of early estimates while ensuring the protection of the rights and freedoms of data holders. The national statistical institutes and other competent national authorities and the Commission (Eurostat) should have access to and use such data and cooperate with the private data holders in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 223/2009.

Removed(24) To ensure the comparability of European statistics on population and housing at Union level, it is essential that common population definitions are used and implemented in a harmonised way. To implement the single harmonised population base consistently, robustly and cost-effectively while ensuring timely results, it should be possible to apply scientifically based modelling techniques and statistical methods such as ‘signs of life’, where appropriate.

Removed(25) Member States should provide their data and metadata in electronic form in an appropriate technical format to be provided by the Commission (Eurostat). International standards, such as the Statistical Data and Metadata Exchange initiative, and statistical or technical standards elaborated within the Union, such as metadata and validation standards or European Interoperable Framework principles, should be used to the extent relevant for European statistics on population and housing. The ESSC has endorsed the ESS standards for metadata and quality reports, in accordance with Article 12 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009. Those standards are to contribute to the harmonisation of quality assurance and reporting under this Regulation and should therefore be introduced.

Removed(26) European statistics on population and housing should meet the quality criteria on relevance, accuracy, timeliness and punctuality, accessibility and clarity, comparability and coherence specified in Regulation (EC) No 223/2009. The quality of those statistics should be enhanced in so far as the needs of the Union evolve and mechanisms should be established to address possible situations where the quality of data is not guaranteed. Appropriate results from the quality assessment carried out by the Commission (Eurostat) should be publicly available to statistics users by assuring free and easy access to those statistics through Commission (Eurostat) databases on its website and in its publications.

Removed(26a) European statistics on population and housing should address the persistent lack of data regarding vulnerable groups, namely hard-to-reach population groups, such as persons residing in institutions (for instance military institutions, correctional and penal institutions, dormitories of schools and universities, religious institutions, hospitals, residential care centres, institutions for persons with disabilities and orphanages), persons aged over 75, persons with disabilities, homeless people, persons with a migrant background and stateless persons. In order to bridge that data divide and to prevent social and economic inequalities arising from it, the Member States should develop strategies and targeted solutions for collecting data about hard-to-reach population groups, in particular with regard to locating, contacting, persuading and interviewing hard-to-reach populations.

Removed(26b) Adequate, timely and effective policies presuppose reliable and comparable data, disaggregated by gender, age and, where relevant, nationality, socio-economic status, geographical area, and other characteristics in accordance with the statistical principles laid down in Article 338(1) TFEU and in the European Statistics Code of practice and Quality assurance Framework of the ESS. That data is relevant to better understand population and housing trends, to combat intersectional discrimination and to implement and assess Union policies, political objectives and actions, such as the principles of the European Pillar of Social Rights, the European Child Guarantee, the European Care Strategy, the European Strategy for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the European Platform on Combatting Homelessness, all of which rely heavily on data about households and families. Disaggregation of statistics by disability should be encouraged by using existing and new administrative data sources, which should be leveraged to explore capturing disability. The collection and use of such data must be conducted with full respect of Union and national privacy and fundamental rights standards, particularly where involving data of minors. Disaggregation by gender should reflect available data in Member States. In some Member States, it is currently possible for persons to legally register as having a third, often a neutral, gender. This Regulation does not affect relevant national rules giving effect to such registration.

Removed(27) Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 includes rules on the provision of data from the Member States to the Commission (Eurostat) and on the use thereof, including on the transmission and protection of confidential data. Measures taken in accordance with this Regulation should ensure that confidential data are provided and used exclusively for statistical purposes in accordance with Articles 21 and 22 of that Regulation.

Removed(28) The Commission (Eurostat) is to respect the statistical confidentiality of the data provided by Member States pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 223/2009. With regard to the population statistics collected under this Regulation, a harmonised approach to ensuring the high quality of European aggregates and avoiding the disclosure of confidential data in statistical outputs should be developed, avoiding as far as possible the suppression of data.

Removed(29) Data sources available at national level are not always able to capture accurately phenomena related to the free movement of persons in the Union, the access of persons to cross-border services on demographic vital events and the exercise of persons rights to buy and own housing property used as primary, holiday and secondary accommodation across the Union. There are also discrepancies in the bilateral migration flows and difficulties to measure population groups, for instance among the migrant, homeless or stateless population. Therefore, data sharing for the purposes of compiling statistics on population and migration and ensuring their quality should be reinforced and considered as yet another data source. Such reinforced data sharing may cover a wide range of relevant data, from data that clearly do not allow for the identification of statistical units, either directly or indirectly, to data potentially subject to statistical confidentiality requirements. Member States should, in their own interest and in the interest of the other Member States, participate in data sharing activities, including in pilot projects assessing innovative secure solutions. The Commission (Eurostat) should also establish a secure infrastructure to facilitate such data sharing while ensuring all necessary safeguards for data protection.

Removed▌

Removed(31) The sharing of confidential data should take place only on the basis of a request justifying the necessity of sharing those data in accordance with Chapter V of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009.

Removed(32) In the longer term, the collaborative efforts in the ESS to mitigate cross-border statistical quality issues, such as double counting of Union residents enjoying freedom of movement, should benefit from, for example, single digital identifiers established at Union level by Regulation (EU) No 910/2014.

Removed(33) This Regulation is without prejudice to Regulations (EU) 2016/679 and (EU) 2018/1725 and Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council. Within their respective scope of application, the latter Regulations are to apply to the processing of personal data under this Regulation, also considering that personal data processed for statistical purposes in the public interest are statistical confidential data, subject to the statistical confidentiality principle. Therefore, such data should only be used for statistical purposes and should never be used for measures or decisions regarding any particular natural person. Anonymised or pseudonymised data should be preferably used for processing, sharing and archiving of personal data for statistical purposes under this Regulation to guarantee the safeguards adopted pursuant to Article 89 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 and Article 13 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725. Where personal data are processed according to Regulation (EU) 2016/679 or Regulation (EU) 2018/1725, the principles of lawfulness, fairness, transparency and accuracy, purpose limitation, data minimisation, storage limitation and integrity and confidentiality should be fully applied. Similarly, the statistical principles set out in Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 and further elaborated in the European Statistics Code of Practice should also apply.

Removed(34) European statistics on population and housing should evolve to take into account emerging data needs stemming from changing policy priorities, as well as changes in the demographic, migratory, social or economic situation in the Union. The Commission (Eurostat) should undertake pilot and feasibility studies assessing the feasibility of the adaptations concerned as appropriate and should take into account aspects such as costs and administrative burdens on Member States and the availability of appropriate data sources. When preparing those studies, the Commission should ensure the representativeness of the studies at Union level, reflecting national diversities. The Commission should evaluate the results of the studies in cooperation with Member States.

Removed(35) In order to take account of demographic, economic and social trends, technological developments and the need to design well-targeted policies in a timely manner, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in order to amend the list, description , periodicities and reference times of detailed topics covered by European statistics on population and housing; to update the periodicities and reference times in the Annex to this Regulation and to specify the information to be provided by Member States on an ad hoc basis. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making. In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States' experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts.

Removed(35a) The importance of European statistics as vital part of evidence-based decision-making is reflected in the programming and financing framework established by Regulation (EU) 2021/690 of the European Parliament and the Council for the development, production and dissemination of European statistics (Single Market Programme). Member States should be able to apply for financial support from the Single Market Programme as well as from the Technical Support Instrument established by Regulation (EU) 2021/240 of the European Parliament and of the Council in accordance with the objectives and rules of those instruments, for adapting their national statistical systems, improving methodology and data quality of statistics and planning and implementing ad-hoc data collections under this Regulation.

Removed(36) In accordance with Regulations (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 and (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council and with Council Regulations (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95, (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 and (EU) 2017/1939, the financial interests of the Union are to be protected by means of proportionate measures, including measures relating to the prevention, detection, correction and investigation of irregularities, including fraud, to the recovery of funds lost, wrongly paid or incorrectly used, and, where appropriate, to the imposition of administrative penalties. In particular, in accordance with Regulations (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 and (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) has the power to carry out administrative investigations, including on-the-spot checks and inspections, with a view to establishing whether there has been fraud, corruption or any other illegal activity affecting the financial interests of the Union. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) is empowered, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, to investigate and prosecute criminal offences affecting the financial interests of the Union as provided for in Directive (EU) 2017/1371 of the European Parliament and of the Council. In accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046, any person or entity receiving Union funds is to fully cooperate in the protection of the financial interests of the Union, grant the necessary rights and access to the Commission, OLAF, the Court of Auditors and, in respect of those Member States participating in enhanced cooperation pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, the EPPO, and ensure that any third parties involved in the implementation of Union funds grant equivalent rights.

Removed(37) In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation with regard to the specification of data and metadata requirements, technical formats and procedures for data and metadata provision, content and structure of quality reports, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and the Council.

Removed(38) Where the implementation of this Regulation, or of the delegated and implementing acts adopted pursuant thereto, would require major adaptations to the national statistical system of a Member State for data provision with periodicity of less than 10 years, the Commission should be able, in duly justified cases and for a limited period of time, to grant derogations to the Member States concerned.

Removed(39) Since the objective of this Regulation, namely the systematic production of European statistics on population and housing, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States but can rather, by reason of consistency and comparability, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 TEU. In accordance with the principle of proportionality as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve that objective.

Removed(40) The European Data Protection Supervisor was consulted in accordance with Article 42(1) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 and delivered an opinion on 16 March 2023.

Removed(41) The ESSC has been consulted,

RemovedHAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

RemovedArticle 1 Subject matter

RemovedThis Regulation establishes a common legal framework for the development, production and dissemination of European statistics on population and housing.

RemovedArticle 2 Definitions

RemovedFor the purpose of this Regulation, the following definitions shall apply:

Removed(1) ‘citizenship’ means the particular legal bond between a natural person and his or her State, acquired by birth or naturalisation, whether by declaration, choice, marriage, adoption or other means in accordance with national law;

Removed(2) ‘usual residence’ means the place where a person normally spends the daily period of rest, regardless of temporary absences for purposes of recreation, holidays, visits to friends and relatives, business, medical treatment or religious pilgrimage. Only the following persons shall be considered to be usual residents of a specific geographical area:

Removed(a) those who have lived in their place of usual residence most of the time in the 12 months prior to and including the reference date; or

Removed(b) those who arrived at their place of usual residence during the 12 months prior to and including the reference date and for whom there is an intention or expectation of staying there most of the time for at least 12 months after arrival;

Removed(3) ‘signs of life’ means any information indicative of the actual presence and usual residence of a person on the territory of interest, including information obtained from any appropriate source or combination of them, including digital traces that relate to the person;

Removed(4) ▌

Removed(5) ‘international migration’ means the event by which a person establishes his or her usual residence in the territory of a Member State or third country, having previously been usually resident in another Member State or a third country;

Removed(6) ‘immigrant’ means a person who underwent international migration during the reference period to establish his or her new usual residence inside the reporting country;

Removed(7) ‘emigrant’ means a person who underwent international migration during the reference period to establish his or her new usual residence outside the reporting country, having previously been usually resident within the reporting country;

Removed(8) ‘internal migration’ means the event by which a person changes his or her usual residence within the territory of the reporting country;

Removed(8a) ‘hard-to-reach population groups’ means groups of individuals for whom a real or perceived barrier exists for full and representative inclusion or identification in the collection of statistical data, either due to lack of coverage of respective groups, or due to lack of specific characteristics to identify them;

Removed(9) ‘living quarters’ means a temporary or permanent structure, shelter or lodging place at which one or more persons reside, irrespective of whether it is designed or intended for human habitation;

Removed(10) ▌ ‘conventional dwellings’ are structurally separate and independent premises in fixed locations that are designed for permanent human habitation and which at the reference date are:

Removed(a) used as a usual residence;

Removed(b) unoccupied; or

Removed(c) used as a secondary or seasonal residence.

Removed(x) ‘separate premises’ means premises surrounded by walls and covered by a roof or ceiling in such a way that one or more persons can reside there independent of others;

Removed(xx) ‘independent premises’ means premises with direct access from a street or stairway, passage, corridor or land;

Removed(11) ‘building intended for habitation’ means a permanent structure comprised of one or more conventional dwellings or which is intended for institutional or collective housing;

Removed(12) ‘household’ means a group of two or more persons who share living quarters ▌ or an individual person who does not form part of any other household;

Removed(12a) institution’ means a collective living quarter for the purpose of long-term housing and provision of services needed for daily life to a group of persons;

Removed(13) ‘family’ means a group of two or more persons who live most of the time in the same household and who are related through parenthood or through marital, registered or consensual union partnership;

Removed(14) ‘administrative records’ mean data generated by a non‐statistical source, usually a register held by a public body, the main aim of which is not the provision of statistics;

Removed(15) ‘domain’ means one or several data sets that covers particular topics;

Removed(16) ‘topic’ means the content of the information to be collected about the statistical units, with each topic covering several detailed topics;

Removed(17) ‘detailed topic’ means the detailed content of the information to be collected about the statistical units related to a topic, each detailed topic covering one or several variables;

Removed(18) ‘data set’ means ▌ one or several variables organised in a structured form;

Removed(19) ‘population and housing census’ means the detailed decennial data sets and metadata to be provided under this Regulation;

Removed(20) ‘statistical unit’ means one member of a universe of entities, namely persons, objects or events about which data are collected and statistics are ▌ compiled;

Removed(21) ‘variable’ means a characteristic of a statistical unit that can assume more than one set of values;

Removed(22) ‘breakdown’ means a predefined discrete, exhaustive and mutually exclusive set of values which can be assigned to a variables characterising statistical units;