Structural business statistics: inclusion of insurance sector

The efficient monitoring of the insurance sector will require the existence of accurate, reliable, regular, timely, harmonized and comparable statistical data. It therefore supports in principle the Commission's present proposals. However, the collection, compilation and transmission of this data imposes a double burden; firstly, on the enterprises which have to provide the raw data relating to their own activities and, secondly, on the national administrative authorities within each Member State, which are responsible for aggregating the data provided and transmitting it to Eurostat. The ESC therefore shares the concerns that have been expressed that these burdens should not be unnecessarily increased. The ESC approves the Commission's proposal for a regulation, with some reservations, but considers that it should be made the subject of a SLIM initiative project in order to determine whether the benefits are commensurate with the additional costs being imposed on enterprises and governmental administrations. �