New challenges facing official statistics

摘要

This article is an edited transcript of a panel discussion held at the 2013 Hong Kong World Statistical Conference (WSC). The Panel topics were centred on new themes facing National Statistical Institutes (NSIs). The panel was chaired by Stephen Penneck, then President, IAOS. He also produced this edited transcript. There were four panellists: Marjo Bruun, Director General, Statistics Finland; Carmelita Ericta, Administrator and Civil Registrar General, Philippines; Jil Matheson, National Statistician, United Kingdom; and Walter Radermacher, Director General, Eurostat. The topics for discussion, chosen by members of the IAOS in part through its web site, were: 1.How can NSIs best collaborate to reduce their costs? 2. How can more developed statistical offices best support those that are less developed? 3. When resources are scarce, should we focus on data collection, and let others do the analysis? 4. Open Data. Is it a threat or an opportunity? How should NSI's respond? 5. What should the boundaries of official statistics be? 6. How should we respond to those who would like us to measure something which actually is not measurable (e.g. what about the statistical measurement of non-observed economy)? 7. How do we draw a borderline between research and statistics or forecastingow casting and statistics? 8. Does the population census have a future? 9. How can the official statistical community best support its members who have issues of statistical integrity with their governments?