A Peer Review is where members of the European Statistical System (ESS) ensure that statistics produced by all National Statistical Offices meet required principles as set out by the European Statistics Code of Practice (ES CoP).
Quality is the trademark of European statistics and by ensuring that every Central Statistics Office (CSO) publication meets agreed standards, it means the public and decision makers can trust the independence and quality of our data. To guarantee the quality of the statistics produced by European National Statistics Agencies, the ESS created a common quality framework. The ES CoP is the cornerstone of this quality framework. The CSO is Ireland’s National Statistics Office and is fully signed up to the ESS. Read more about the European Statistical System (ESS)
The CSO undertook a peer review in February 2022. The Peer Review found that the CSO has set a clear direction set for the future of the CSO and the Irish Statistical System (ISS), the CSO has a committed workforce with a strong focus on cooperation, innovation, and a respect for statistical principles, the CSO has no compliance issues with the European Statistics Code of Practice (ES CoP) and that the CSO is widely known and trusted in society as being an independent producer of high-quality official statistics. Read the Peer Review Report Ireland 2022
What is a Peer Review and who carries it out?
A Peer Review is where members of the European Statistical System (ESS) ensure that statistics produced by all National Statistical Offices meet required principles as set out by the European Statistics Code of Practice (ES CoP).
Why are these quality checks important?
Quality is the trademark of European statistics and by ensuring that every Central Statistics Office (CSO) publication meets agreed standards, it means the public and decision makers can trust the independence and quality of our data. To guarantee the quality of the statistics produced by European National Statistics Agencies, the ESS created a common quality framework. The ES CoP is the cornerstone of this quality framework. The CSO is Ireland’s National Statistics Office and is fully signed up to the ESS. Read more about the European Statistical System
What are the objectives of Peer Reviews?
The objective of Peer Reviews is to assess Ireland’s compliance with the 16 principles (and 84 sub-indicators) of the ES CoP. The subsequent recommendations by the Peer Review team will help the CSO to further improve and develop our statistical system.
What is the European Statistics Code of Practice (ES CoP)?
The common quality framework of the ESS is based on the ES CoP, a set of 16 principles (and 84 sub-indicators), which covers the institutional environment, statistical processes and statistical outputs of all National Statistical Offices. Read more about the 16 principles of the European Statistics Code of Practice on Eurostat's website.
Has the CSO had a Peer Review before?
The CSO has undergone two Peer Reviews: one in 2007 and a second in 2015. The CSO will undergo a third Peer Review this year. A team of four experts will carry out an in-person review of the CSO between 14-18 February 2022. It will form part of a two year European-wide Peer Review process.
Who participates in the Peer Reviews?
All members of the ESS are regularly reviewed to ensure each National Statistics Office meets required principles. The Peer Review team is composed of four European experts in statistics, auditing and governance issues, including an independent expert. CSO staff also take part in external Peer Reviews of other member countries.
The Peer Reviews are carried out on a country-by-country basis according to these steps: