The mandate of the Committee for official statistics

The committee for official statistics is founded on section 6 (2) of the Statistics Act, and its remit is to aid the development, production and dissemination of Norwegian official statistics. The committee for official statistics is chaired by Statistics Norway, which in consultation with the committee will draw up a proposal for a statistics programme.

The Ministry of Finance has provided supplementary instructions on the responsibilities and work of the committee.

Chapter 1. Purpose and organisation

1. The committee shall contribute to a suitable and effective national statistical system, see sections 4, 5 and 6 of the Statistics Act.
2. The committee is chaired by Statistics Norway, which also serves as the committee’s secretariat.
3. Participating organisations shall cover their own expenses in connection with committee participation.

Chapter 2. Responsibilities of the committee

1. The committee is an advisory body that shall assist Statistics Norway in preparing a proposal for a multi-year national statistics programme. The committee shall contribute to the coordination and development of official statistics and advise on the preparation and dissemination of the statistics. The committee shall focus on user needs and cost-effective statistics production.
2. The committee shall provide input on which statistical areas are to be included in the programme and which authorities are responsible for the statistics. Statistics Norway is responsible for submitting the proposal for a national statistics programme to the Ministry of Finance.
3. The committee shall help to assess any financial consequences resulting from the proposal for a new statistics programme as a whole and for individual areas of the programme. If the proposal triggers the need for additional appropriations in connection with the national budget, this must be dealt with by participating organisations during the ordinary budget process.
4. The committee shall also deal with other matters related to the programme, such as the annual update of the overview of statistics.
5. The committee shall assist Statistics Norway in its work on the annual official report on the quality of official statistics according to guidelines issued by Statistics Norway.
6. The committee shall advise and support the producers of official statistics on statistical matters.
7. The committee shall further develop the statistical system and the official statistics through exchanging experiences and developing competence in new data sources and solutions for the production and dissemination of statistics and data sharing.
8. The committee shall help to coordinate Norway’s international statistics obligations and statistical cooperation.

Chapter 3. Notice of meeting and agenda papers

1. The committee shall meet as required, and this shall be at least twice a year. In addition, sector-specific meetings may be held with parts of the committee with a view to preparing the programme.
2. Statistics Norway shall convene committee meetings.
3. Statistics Norway shall convene a meeting where this is requested by three or more participating organisations.
4. The notice of meeting shall be in writing, and shall, as a rule, be sent out at least two weeks before the date of the meeting.
5. All relevant agenda papers must, as a rule, be submitted at least two weeks before the date of the meeting.
6. Statistics Norway shall prepare draft minutes of all meetings, and distribute these to participants for comments. A copy of the final minutes shall be sent to all members and the Ministry of Finance.

The instructions are applicable from 1 November 2019.