Venue: Department of the Taoiseach, Government Buildings, D02 R583
Date: Wednesday February 7, 2018 at 9.00am
Item 1: Minutes of NSB meeting December 6, 2018 (NSB 2018-1-2)
Item 2: NSB Strategy – Review of progress on recommended actions (NSB 2018-1-3)
Item 3: Director General’s progress report (NSB 2018-1-4)
Item 4: Update on CSO resources (NSB 2018-1-5)
Item 5: CSO prioritisation 2018 (NSB 2018-1-6)
Item 6: Household Survey Development (HSD) and Labour Force Survey (LFS) results (NSB 2018-1-7)
Presentation by Donal Kelly (Household Survey Development) and Brian Ring (Labour Market & Earnings)
Item 7: Any other business
National Statistics Board
Minutes
Venue: Department of the Taoiseach, Government Buildings
Date: Wednesday 7 February 2018
Members present: Dr. Patricia O’Hara (Chairperson), Mr. John McCarthy, Mr. John Shaw, Mr. Gerard O’Neill, Mr. John Martin and Mr. Pádraig Dalton.
Apologies: Dr. Eimear Cotter and Mr. Gerard Brady
Non-members in attendance: Mr. Paul Morrin, Ms. Maria Hurley and Mr. Richard McMahon (CSO Senior Management), Ms. Claire Hanley (Secretary)
Mr. Donal Kelly and Mr. Brian Ring (CSO) attended for item 6 of the agenda.
Item 1: Minutes of December 6 2017 (NSB 2018-1-2)
The minutes of the previous meeting were agreed with one amendment.
Item 2: NSB Strategy – Review of progress on recommended actions (NSB 2018-1-3)
The Board discussed progress on recommended actions from the NSB Strategy, specifically in relation to the following:
Item 3: Director General’s progress report (NSB 2018-1-4)
The Director General briefed the Board on a number of recent developments within CSO and at European level. Specific issues were selected for further discussion.
Government Accounts classification of Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs)
The Board were updated on the status of the review by the CSO Government Accounts Division of the statistical classification of Irish universities and of AHBs for the March 2018 EDP[1] results. The CSO completed the review of the majority of the larger AHBs in December 2017 and provided an assessment to Eurostat. This assessment has been published nationally and the final ruling lies with Eurostat which is expected in advance of the March EDP notification.
The Board discussed the challenges posed by statistical classification decisions such as the reclassification of AHBs.
Census of Population 2021
The Board were updated on the ongoing work of the Census Advisory Group (CAG) in its consideration of the submissions made during the public consultation on Census 2021. The CAG will make recommendations on the testing of new and amended questions in the Census pilot survey due to take place in September 2018.
The Board discussed the high level of engagement by users in relation to the public consultation process and the insight provided by this process for user needs.
Crime Statistics
The Board were apprised of plans by the CSO to resume the publication of recorded crime statistics in the first half of 2018. It is intended that they be described as “Statistics under Reservation”.
The Board discussed various aspects of recommencing the publication of these statistics and the nature of the CSO’s reservation.
Social Modules
The role of the Board in advising on the selection of non-legislative modules to be attached to the General Household Survey (GHS) was considered. The Board agreed that the process would be discussed in more detail at their next meeting in April so that the CSO’s consideration could be presented at the June 2018 meeting.
National Competitiveness Council (NCC)
The Board were briefed on the report published by the NCC in December 2017 which makes extensive use of CSO statistics and shows the value of statistical outputs to informing policy. The report also makes four recommendations regarding the work of the CSO.
The Board discussed these recommendations in the context of CSO resources.
Statistical System Coordination Unit (SSCU)
The Board were updated on the secondment of an analyst from SOLAS to CSO to work on training policies with the CSO team in SSCU. Further secondments into CSO will be progressed subject to availability.
The Board welcomed this development and discussed the value of having other disciplines, such as economists, similarly deployed.
Administrative Data Centre (ADC)
The Board were informed of developments at the CSO ADC involving a focus on property-based datasets in addition to person-based and business-based administrative data.
Item 4: Update on CSO resources (NSB 2018-1-5)
The Board were updated on the situation with regard to current pay scales for the Statistician grade and the difficulties in retaining staff at this level. The CSO is facing competition from the private sector and also from within the Public Service itself, where data analyst type posts are increasingly being advertised at Assistant Principal level.
The CSO is actively engaged with the Department of Public Expenditure and reform to address the risks to future recruitment and retention of these skilled staff and the matter will be pursued vigorously during Q1 2018.
The Board noted the following in relation to CSO staffing resources and planned recruitment for 2018:
Item 5: CSO prioritisation 2018 (NSB 2018-1-6)
Maria Hurley (CSO) presented the CSO business prioritisation for 2018 outlining key activities and outputs for the year and the challenges posed by current budget constraints.
The Board discussed the impact of these constraints on the Innovation and Modernisation Programme in the CSO, particularly in relation to IT requirements which have been postponed until 2019.
Item 6: Household Survey Development (HSD) and Labour Force Survey (LFS) results (NSB 2018-1-7)
Donal Kelly (CSO) presented an overview of the Household Survey Development (HSD) project outlining the main deliverables and future developments planned for the project.
The Board discussed future plans including the timeline for an integrated household economic survey and improvements to the Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC).
Brian Ring (CSO) presented the results from the new Labour Force Survey (LFS) for Q3 2017 published by the CSO on January 16, 2018. The presentation included the transition from the Quarterly National Household Survey (QNHS) to the LFS, the methodology involved and the overall impact on the results.
The Board welcomed the improvements to the labour market statistics brought about by the new LFS. They discussed aspects of the methodology used and the effect on the results particularly in relation to the potential of capturing information on the gig economy and the gender breakdown of the unemployment numbers.
The Board congratulated all those involved in the recent publication by the CSO, in collaboration with the HEA, entitled Higher Education Outcomes – Graduation Years 2010-2014.
The next meeting of the Board will take place on April 11, 2018 at the Department of the Taoiseach, Government Buildings. The Malta Statistics Authority is planning a working trip to Ireland through the EU Structural Reform Support Programme (SRSP) and has requested a meeting with the NSB during their visit. It is envisaged that this meeting will take place on the afternoon of April 11, following the next Board meeting. The agenda and dates will be confirmed in due course and the Board members notified.