Eurostat

The data correspond to quarterly financial accounts for the general government sector and follows the ESA2010 methodology. The data covers financial transactions and balance sheet items for general government (consolidated and non-consolidated) and its subsectors. This includes a number of financial instruments (F.1, F.2, F.3, F.4, ...) as well as some balancing items such as net financial transactions, net financial worth and net financial assets and liabilties. Data are available in million of euro, million of national currency (average exchange rates are used for transactions and end of period exchange rates are used for stocks) and as a percentage of GDP (for transactions quarterly GDP is used; for stocks a rolling sum of the last four quarters is used). In the table gov_10a_ggfa, annualised quarterly financial accounts for general government are presented. For financial transactions, data is summed over the four quarters of each year. For the conversion from national currency into euro, the yearly average exchange rate is used. For balance sheet items (stocks), the annualised data corresponds to the data of the fourth quarter. The percentage of GDP data of annualised data uses annual GDP transmitted by the Member States. In the course of the annualisation, small rounding differences may be amplified. Geographic coverage: EU and euro area. Main data sources are the tables provided according to the European Parliament and Council Regulation (EU) N° 549/2013 of 21 May 2013 (OJ No L174/1).

The general government deficit/surplus is defined in the Maastricht Treaty as general government net lending (+)/net borrowing (-) according to the European System of Accounts. The general government sector comprises central government, state government, local government, and social security funds. The relevant definitions are provided in Council Regulation 479/2009, as amended.

General government gross fixed capital formation (ESA 2010 code P.51g) consists of resident producers' acquisitions, less disposals of fixed assets during a given period plus certain additions to the value of non-produced assets realised by the productive activity of government producer or units. Fixed assets are produced assets used in production for more than one year.

The general government gross debt is defined in the Maastricht Treaty as consolidated general government gross debt at nominal value, outstanding at the end of the year in the following categories of government liabilities (as defined in ESA 2010): currency and deposits (AF.2), debt securities (AF.3), and loans (AF.4). General government sector includes the following subsectors: central government, state government, local government and social security funds. Basic data are expressed in national currency, converted into euro using end-year exchange rates for the euro provided by the European Central Bank (ECB). The debt of the Euro area and EU aggregates is consolidated by removal of the loans that Member States have granted to other Member States. In order to reflect economic and technological developments and meet user needs, in September 2014 the new national accounting framework ESA 2010 replaced the previous framework ESA 95. This led to revisions of the time series for all Member States (please see Eurostat press release for the impact of the revisions on the government deficit and debt ratios). The changes to government debt relate to the classification of certain entities into government.

Government Finance Statistics (GFS) form the basis for fiscal monitoring in Europe. Annual government deficit and debt statistics are reported to the European Commission in the framework of the Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP). Government revenue and expenditure, annual and quarterly, are reported by Member States under the ESA 95 transmission programme.  General government net borrowing/net lending (deficit/surplus), and general government debt, form two of the convergence criteria for EMU. The following series are as reported in the EDP tables:Deficit/surplus of the general government sector;General government debt;General government gross fixed capital formation;General government primary balanceIntergovernmental lending within the EU and euro area in the context of the financial crisis.  Total general government revenue and total general government expenditure annual series are reported by national authorities in ESA table 2 of the ESA 95 transmission programme.  General government deficit/surplus and general government debt quarterly series are reported by national authorities in ESA tables 25 and 28, respectively, of the ESA 95 transmission programme.

Government Finance Statistics (GFS) form the basis for fiscal monitoring in Europe, most notably for the statistics related to the Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP). The EDP is established in the Treaty and specified in the Stability and Growth Pact legislation. The Member States report data related to the EDP to the Commission (Eurostat) which, in turn, is responsible for providing the data to the Council. European GFS, including the statistics for the EDP, are produced in accordance with the European System of Accounts 2010 (ESA 2010), the EU manual for national accounts, which in September 2014 replaced the previous version of the national accounting framework ESA 95. It is supplemented by further interpretation and guidance from Eurostat, in particular the Manual on Government Deficit and Debt. Council Regulation 479/2009 as amended requires that Member States report government deficit/surplus (hereinafter deficit) and debt data related to the EDP twice per year: before 1 April and 1 October for the preceding four calendar years and a forecast for the current year. The data are reported in harmonised tables. These tables are designed specifically to provide a consistent framework, with a link to national budgetary aggregates and between the deficit and changes in the debt. They should be fully consistent with GFS data delivered to Eurostat in the ESA 2010 transmission programme. The EDP notification tables contain for general government and its sub sectors: Table 1: Summary table on deficit and debt, including auxiliary indicators (Gross Fixed Capital Formation, Interest and Gross Domestic Product - GDP)Tables 2A - 2D: Transition from the working balance to the deficit/surplus for general government sub sectorsTables 3A - 3E: Transition from the deficit/surplus to the change in debt for general government and its sub sectorsTable 4: Supplementary data. The data are presented in the Eurostat's Statistics Database in national currency, euro/ECU, and percentage of GDP. In order to reflect economic and technological developments and meet user needs, in September 2014 the new national accounting framework ESA 2010 replaced the previous framework ESA 95. This led to revisions of the time series for all Member States (please see Eurostat press release for the impact of the revisions on the government deficit and debt ratios). The main changes relate to the classification of certain entities into government and the treatment of transactions related to pension schemes. Also the concept of government deficit was changed as regards treatment of interest on swaps and forward rate agreements (Commission Regulation 220/2014 amending the Council Regulation 479/2009), according to which these flows are now recorded as financial transaction in line with the core ESA accounting framework.

Main revenue and expenditure items of the general government sector, notified by national authorities in Table 2 of the ESA2010 transmission programme. Data are presented in millions of Euro, millions of national currency units and percentages of GDP. Geographic coverage: EU and euro area, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland. Main sources of data: National authorities (National Statistical Institutes)

Within the last 12 months before the survey for private purposes. Derived variable on use of eGovernment services. Individuals used at least one of the following services: for obtaining information from public authorities websites, for downloading official forms, for submitting completed forms.

Within the last 12 months before the survey.

Data given in this domain are collected annually by the National Statistical Institutes and are based on Eurostat's annual model questionnaires on ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) usage in households and by individuals. The model questionnaire changes every year. The changes of questions in the MQ are required by the evolving situation of information and communication technologies. Large part of the data collected are used in the context of the follow up of the Digital Single Market process (Monitoring the Digital Economy & Society  2016-2021). This conceptual framework follows the 2011 - 2015 benchmarking framework, the i2010 Benchmarking Framework and the eEurope 2005 Action Plan. ICT usage data are also used in the Consumer Conditions Scoreboard (purchases over the Internet) and in the Employment Guidelines (e-skills of individuals). The aim of the European ICT surveys is the timely provision of statistics on individuals and households on the use of Information and Communication Technologies at European level. Data for this collection are supplied directly from the surveys with no separate treatment. Coverage: The characteristics to be provided are drawn from the following list of subjects: access to and use of ICTs by individuals and/or in households,use of the Internet and other electronic networks for different purposes by individuals and/or in households,ICT security and trust,ICT competence and skills,barriers to the use of ICT and the Internet,perceived effects of ICT usage on individuals and/or on households,use of ICT by individuals to exchange information and services with governments and public administrations (e-government),access to and use of technologies enabling connection to the Internet or other networks from anywhere at any time (ubiquitous connectivity).Breakdowns (see details of available breakdowns): Relating to households: by region of residence (NUTS 1, optional: NUTS 2)by geographical location: less developed regions, transition regions, more developed regionsby degree of urbanisation (till 2012: densely/intermediate/sparsely populated areas; from 2012: densely/thinly populated area, intermediate density area) by type of householdby households net monthly income (optional) Relating to individuals: by region of residence (NUTS1, optional: NUTS 2)by geographical location: less developed regions, transition regions, more developed regionsby degree of urbanisation: (till 2012: densely/intermediate/sparsely populated areas; from 2012: densely/thinly populated area, intermediate density area)by genderby country of birth, country of citizenship (as of 2010, optional in 2010)by educational level: ISCED 1997 up to 2013 and ISCED 2011 from 2014 onwards.by occupation: manual, non-manual; ICT (coded by 2-digit ISCO categories)/non-ICT (optional: all 2-digit ISCO categories)by employment situationby age (in completed years and by groups)legal / de facto marital status (2011-2014, optional) Regional breakdowns (NUTS) are available only for a selection of indicators disseminated in the regional tables in Eurobase (Regional Information society statistics by NUTS regions (isoc_reg): Households with access to the internet at homeHouseholds with broadband accessIndividuals who have never used a computerIndividuals who used the internet, frequency of use and activitiesIndividuals who used the internet for interaction with public authoritiesIndividuals who ordered goods or services over the internet for private useIndividuals who accessed the internet away from home or work

The data on contingent liabilities and potential obligations of government are collected in the context of the Enhanced Economic Governance package (the "six-pack") adopted in 2011. In particular, Council Directive 2011/85 on requirements for budgetary frameworks of the Member States requires the Member States to publish relevant information on contingent liabilities with potentially large impacts on public budgets, including government guarantees, non-performing loans, and liabilities stemming from the operation of public corporations, including the extent thereof. The liabilities are called “contingent” in the sense that they are by nature only potential and not actual liabilities and can materialise as actual government liabilities only if certain specific conditions prevail. Non-performing loans could imply a potential loss for government if these loans were not repaid by their original debtor. This new data collection represents a step towards further transparency of public finances in the EU by giving a more comprehensive picture of EU Member States’ financial positions. It is to be underlined that contingent liabilities are not part of the general government (Maastricht) debt as defined in the Council Regulation (EC) No 479/2009 of 25 May 2009 on the application of the Protocol on the excessive deficit procedure annexed to the Treaty establishing the European Community. Eurostat collects and publishes the following indicators: government guarantees, liabilities related to public-private partnerships recorded off-balance sheet of government, liabilities of government controlled entities classified outside general government (public corporations) and non-performing loans (government assets). Regarding government controlled entities, it should be mentioned that this refers to  government controlled units, not classified in general government, and which are controlled, directly or indirectly (through other public units), by government. In cases when the government share in a corporation is lower than 50% and government does not have control over an entity, the corporation is not considered as controlled by government. Regarding the control criteria, according to ESA 2010 paragraph 20.18: “Control over an entity is the ability to determine the general policy or programme of that entity (…)”. The criteria to be used for corporations are indicated in ESA 2010 paragraphs 2.38 and further detailed in paragraph 20.309. ESA 2010 paragraph 2.38 specifies that: “General government secures control over a corpo­ration as a result of special legislation, decree or reg­ulation which empowers the government to deter­mine corporate policy. The following indicators are the main factors to consider in deciding whether a corporation is controlled by government:(a) government ownership of the majority of the voting interest; (b) government control of the board or governing body; (c) government control of the appointment and removal of key personnel;(d) government control of key committees in the entity; (e) government possession of a golden share; (f) special regulations; (g) government as a dominant customer; (h) borrowing from government. A single indicator may be sufficient to establish control, but, in other cases, a number of separate indicators may collectively indicate control.”

Share of EU population covered by the new Convenant of Mayors per Member State, as the ratio between the population of the cities that have signed in a country and the total population of that country.

The indicator measures confidence among EU citizens in a selection of EU institutions: the European Parliament, the European Commission, and the European Central Bank. It is expressed as the share of positive opinions (people who declare that they tend to trust) about the institutions. Citizens are asked to express their confidence levels by choosing the following alternatives: ‘tend to trust’, ‘tend not to trust’ and ‘don’t know’ or ‘no answer’. The indicator is based on the Eurobarometer, a survey which has been conducted twice a year since 1973 to monitor the evolution of public opinion in the Member States. The indicator only displays the results of the autumn survey.

Data given in this domain are collected annually by the National Statistical Institutes and are based on Eurostat's annual model questionnaires on ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) usage in households and by individuals. The model questionnaire changes every year. The changes of questions in the MQ are required by the evolving situation of information and communication technologies. Large part of the data collected are used in the context of the follow up of the Digital Single Market process (Monitoring the Digital Economy & Society  2016-2021). This conceptual framework follows the 2011 - 2015 benchmarking framework, the i2010 Benchmarking Framework and the eEurope 2005 Action Plan. ICT usage data are also used in the Consumer Conditions Scoreboard (purchases over the Internet) and in the Employment Guidelines (e-skills of individuals). The aim of the European ICT surveys is the timely provision of statistics on individuals and households on the use of Information and Communication Technologies at European level. Data for this collection are supplied directly from the surveys with no separate treatment. Coverage: The characteristics to be provided are drawn from the following list of subjects: access to and use of ICTs by individuals and/or in households,use of the Internet and other electronic networks for different purposes by individuals and/or in households,ICT security and trust,ICT competence and skills,barriers to the use of ICT and the Internet,perceived effects of ICT usage on individuals and/or on households,use of ICT by individuals to exchange information and services with governments and public administrations (e-government),access to and use of technologies enabling connection to the Internet or other networks from anywhere at any time (ubiquitous connectivity).Breakdowns (see details of available breakdowns): Relating to households: by region of residence (NUTS 1, optional: NUTS 2)by geographical location: less developed regions, transition regions, more developed regionsby degree of urbanisation (till 2012: densely/intermediate/sparsely populated areas; from 2012: densely/thinly populated area, intermediate density area) by type of householdby households net monthly income (optional) Relating to individuals: by region of residence (NUTS1, optional: NUTS 2)by geographical location: less developed regions, transition regions, more developed regionsby degree of urbanisation: (till 2012: densely/intermediate/sparsely populated areas; from 2012: densely/thinly populated area, intermediate density area)by genderby country of birth, country of citizenship (as of 2010, optional in 2010)by educational level: ISCED 1997 up to 2013 and ISCED 2011 from 2014 onwards.by occupation: manual, non-manual; ICT (coded by 2-digit ISCO categories)/non-ICT (optional: all 2-digit ISCO categories)by employment situationby age (in completed years and by groups)legal / de facto marital status (2011-2014, optional) Regional breakdowns (NUTS) are available only for a selection of indicators disseminated in the regional tables in Eurobase (Regional Information society statistics by NUTS regions (isoc_reg): Households with access to the internet at homeHouseholds with broadband accessIndividuals who have never used a computerIndividuals who used the internet, frequency of use and activitiesIndividuals who used the internet for interaction with public authoritiesIndividuals who ordered goods or services over the internet for private useIndividuals who accessed the internet away from home or work

The data correspond to quarterly financial accounts for the general government sector and follows the ESA2010 methodology. The data covers financial transactions and balance sheet items for general government (consolidated and non-consolidated) and its subsectors. This includes a number of financial instruments (F.1, F.2, F.3, F.4, ...) as well as some balancing items such as net financial transactions, net financial worth and net financial assets and liabilties. Data are available in million of euro, million of national currency (average exchange rates are used for transactions and end of period exchange rates are used for stocks) and as a percentage of GDP (for transactions quarterly GDP is used; for stocks a rolling sum of the last four quarters is used). In the table gov_10a_ggfa, annualised quarterly financial accounts for general government are presented. For financial transactions, data is summed over the four quarters of each year. For the conversion from national currency into euro, the yearly average exchange rate is used. For balance sheet items (stocks), the annualised data corresponds to the data of the fourth quarter. The percentage of GDP data of annualised data uses annual GDP transmitted by the Member States. In the course of the annualisation, small rounding differences may be amplified. Geographic coverage: EU and euro area. Main data sources are the tables provided according to the European Parliament and Council Regulation (EU) N° 549/2013 of 21 May 2013 (OJ No L174/1).

'Quarterly government debt' is defined as the total gross debt at nominal value outstanding at the end of each quarter for the general government sector (ref. Regulation  (EU) No 549/2013, Annex B transmission programme, definition of general government sector ESA 2010 §2.111). Data are measured in million Euro, million of national currency units, percentage of GDP and percentage of total consolidated debt. Data cover EU Member States and Norway. Quarterly data on government debt is provided according to the provisions of the European System of Accounts ESA 2010 (Regulation (EU) No 549/2013). Data is transmitted by national authorities (National Statistical Institutes, National Central Banks or Ministries of Finance).

Government Finance Statistics (GFS) form the basis for fiscal monitoring in Europe, most notably for the statistics related to the Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP). The EDP is established in the Treaty and specified in the Stability and Growth Pact legislation. The Member States report data related to the EDP to the Commission (Eurostat) which, in turn, is responsible for providing the data to the Council. European GFS, including the statistics for the EDP, are produced in accordance with the European System of Accounts 2010 (ESA 2010), the EU manual for national accounts, which in September 2014 replaced the previous version of the national accounting framework ESA 95. It is supplemented by further interpretation and guidance from Eurostat, in particular the Manual on Government Deficit and Debt. Council Regulation 479/2009 as amended requires that Member States report government deficit/surplus (hereinafter deficit) and debt data related to the EDP twice per year: before 1 April and 1 October for the preceding four calendar years and a forecast for the current year. The data are reported in harmonised tables. These tables are designed specifically to provide a consistent framework, with a link to national budgetary aggregates and between the deficit and changes in the debt. They should be fully consistent with GFS data delivered to Eurostat in the ESA 2010 transmission programme. The EDP notification tables contain for general government and its sub sectors:Table 1: Summary table on deficit and debt, including auxiliary indicators (Gross Fixed Capital Formation, Interest and Gross Domestic Product - GDP)Tables 2A - 2D: Transition from the working balance to the deficit/surplus for general government sub sectorsTables 3A - 3E: Transition from the deficit/surplus to the change in debt for general government and its sub sectorsTable 4: Supplementary data. The data are presented in the Eurostat's Statistics Database in national currency, euro/ECU, and percentage of GDP. In order to reflect economic and technological developments and meet user needs, in September 2014 the new national accounting framework ESA 2010 replaced the previous framework ESA 95. This led to revisions of the time series for all Member States (please see Eurostat press release for the impact of the revisions on the government deficit and debt ratios). The main changes relate to the classification of certain entities into government and the treatment of transactions related to pension schemes. Also the concept of government deficit was changed as regards treatment of interest on swaps and forward rate agreements (Commission Regulation 220/2014 amending the Council Regulation 479/2009), according to which these flows are now recorded as financial transaction in line with the core ESA accounting framework.

Government Finance Statistics (GFS) form the basis for fiscal monitoring in Europe, most notably for the statistics related to the Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP). The EDP is established in the Treaty and specified in the Stability and Growth Pact legislation. The Member States report data related to the EDP to the Commission (Eurostat) which, in turn, is responsible for providing the data to the Council. European GFS, including the statistics for the EDP, are produced in accordance with the European System of Accounts 2010 (ESA 2010), the EU manual for national accounts, which in September 2014 replaced the previous version of the national accounting framework ESA 95. It is supplemented by further interpretation and guidance from Eurostat, in particular the Manual on Government Deficit and Debt. Council Regulation 479/2009 as amended requires that Member States report government deficit/surplus (hereinafter deficit) and debt data related to the EDP twice per year: before 1 April and 1 October for the preceding four calendar years and a forecast for the current year. The data are reported in harmonised tables. These tables are designed specifically to provide a consistent framework, with a link to national budgetary aggregates and between the deficit and changes in the debt. They should be fully consistent with GFS data delivered to Eurostat in the ESA 2010 transmission programme. The EDP notification tables contain for general government and its sub sectors: Table 1: Summary table on deficit and debt, including auxiliary indicators (Gross Fixed Capital Formation, Interest and Gross Domestic Product - GDP)Tables 2A - 2D: Transition from the working balance to the deficit/surplus for general government sub sectorsTables 3A - 3E: Transition from the deficit/surplus to the change in debt for general government and its sub sectorsTable 4: Supplementary data. The data are presented in the Eurostat's Statistics Database in national currency, euro/ECU, and percentage of GDP. In order to reflect economic and technological developments and meet user needs, in September 2014 the new national accounting framework ESA 2010 replaced the previous framework ESA 95. This led to revisions of the time series for all Member States (please see Eurostat press release for the impact of the revisions on the government deficit and debt ratios). The main changes relate to the classification of certain entities into government and the treatment of transactions related to pension schemes. Also the concept of government deficit was changed as regards treatment of interest on swaps and forward rate agreements (Commission Regulation 220/2014 amending the Council Regulation 479/2009), according to which these flows are now recorded as financial transaction in line with the core ESA accounting framework.