8 Statistics
| (34914)
9396/13
COM(13) 247
| Draft Regulation amending Regulation (EU) No. 691/2011 on European environmental economic accounts
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| Legal base | Article 338(1) TFEU; co-decision; QMV
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| Department | Office for National Statistics
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| Basis of consideration | Minister's letter of 13 January 2014
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| Previous Committee Reports | HC 83-v (2013-14), chapter 9 (12 June 2013) and HC 83-xx (2013-14), chapter 15 (6 November 2013)
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| Discussion in Council | Not known
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| Committee's assessment | Politically important
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| Committee's decision | Not cleared; further information requested
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Background
8.1 Environmental accounts are "satellite accounts"
to the main National Accounts — that is extensions to the
National Accounts which allow for analysis of the wider impact
of economic change, in this case the interaction of the economy
with the environment. The accounts use similar concepts to those
employed in the National Accounts and reflect the recommended
EU and United Nations frameworks for developing such accounts.
Regulation (EU) No. 691/2011, the Environmental Accounts Regulation,
introduced modules for three such satellite accounts — air
emissions accounts, environmentally related taxes and economy-wide
material flow accounts. The Regulation provided for the possibility
of additional modules.
8.2 With this draft Regulation the Commission proposes
introduction of three additional modules of accounts:
· environmental protection expenditure accounts;
· environmental goods and services sector
accounts; and
· physical energy flow accounts.
8.3 When we last considered this proposal, in November
2013, we noted that:
· there had been a number of improvements
to the draft Regulation, during Council working party negotiations;
· these changes, if secured in negotiations
between the Council and the European Parliament, would result
in significant savings to UK producers of these statistics, especially
in the development phase;
· the first reading of the proposal was
to continue in the Council working party on 10 October, but with
the matters already agreed considered by the Presidency to be
closed; and
· the UK and other Member States were seeking
further changes to the draft Regulation, in particular to secure
a change from delegated act to implementing acts to decide the
detailed breakdowns of the statistics.
8.4 We said that we hoped to hear of further progress
before the Council adopted a first reading general approach. Meanwhile
the document remained under scrutiny.[29]
The Minister's letter
8.5 The Minister for Civil Society, Cabinet Office
(Mr Nick Hurd), tells us that, following further discussion in
the Council working party on statistics, Coreper has now agreed
a mandate for an informal trilogue with the European Parliament.
He says that this current mandate adequately alleviates the Government's
concerns about difficulties with the proposal in respect of reference
years, transmission deadlines and the use of delegated acts to
decide the detailed breakdowns of these statistics in the future.
He notes in particular that:
· Member States have agreed to the use of
implementing acts for deciding the future detailed breakdown of
statistics; and
· those improvements described to us previously
have been maintained, including importantly, that the first reference
year for the transmission schedule will be 2015.
8.6 The Minister says that:
· the Greek Presidency will now take forward
negotiations with the European Parliament with a view to reaching
an early first-reading agreement; and
· he will, "as far as the emerging
Council timetable allows", ensure that the Committee is updated
on developments before the proposal goes to the Council for approval.
Conclusion
8.7 We are grateful to the Minister for his latest
account of where matters stand on this proposal. We expect to
hear of further progress before the Council adopts the proposal.
(In that connection we remind him that his caveat, "as far
as the emerging Council timetable allows", is not compatible
with the House's Scrutiny Reserve Resolution.) Meanwhile the document
remains under scrutiny.
29 See headnote. Back
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