On 5 November 2024, the Council adopted revisions to the EU legal framework for European statistics, modernising the European Statistical System to better meet contemporary data needs. This updated regulation will allow for sustained access to data held by businesses and public administrations, enabling the European Statistical System to harness digital data sources and advanced technologies. These updates aim to meet the increasing demand for more granular and timely statistics while reducing the reporting burden on stakeholders.
Alongside the revised regulation, the Council also adopted conclusions to support the continuous improvement of EU statistics. These conclusions emphasise the importance of high-quality, comparable, and reliable statistics for effective policy-making across the EU, and they provide guidance for future work to address emerging statistical needs.
Benefits for rural areas and regional development
For rural areas, these updates hold particular relevance by supporting improved data collection practices, which are essential to capturing the unique needs and challenges of these regions. With a framework that is responsive to the digital age, the European Statistical System can deliver deeper insights and more targeted policies that benefit rural development, a core focus of GRANULAR.
What’s next?
The revised regulation will be published in the Official Journal of the European Union, entering into force 20 days after its publication. The European Statistical System, in partnership with national statistical institutes and Eurostat, will work on implementing these advancements to support policy coordination and sustainable development across the EU.
