1. Eurostat work on Crime, Criminal Justice & Victimisation
Marleen De Smedt
Geoffrey Thomas
Cynthia Tavares
19 – 20 February 2009

2. Crime, Criminal Justice & Victimisation
Political framework
Community Statistical Work Programmes
Eurostat Working Group & Task Forces
ESSnet – putting expertise together
19 – 20 February 2009
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3. Political framework
Commission Communication on Developing a comprehensive and coherent EU strategy to measure crime and criminal justice: An EU Action Plan
Commission Decision setting up a group of experts on the policy needs for data on crime and criminal justice
19 – 20 February 2009
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4. Community Statistical Programme 2008 to 2012
Adopted jointly by the European Parliament and the Council on 11 December 2007
Legal framework
“Statistics on migration and asylum, and on crime and criminal justice will develop to meet the evolving needs for statistics to support the Commission's Action Plan to implement the Hague programme on Justice, Freedom and Security issues. The Action Plan includes proposals for …… strengthening security through common action against crime, particularly organised crime…. These developments will begin before 2008 but will continue throughout and beyond the lifetime of this statistical programme.”
19 – 20 February 2009
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5. Community Statistical Programme 2008 to 2012
Current situation
Development of framework to measure crime and criminal justice
Exploration of feasibility of introducing a legal basis for the statistics
Improvement of the comparability of statistics to concentrate on the harmonisation of statistical outputs
Development of new data sources (e.g. organised crime)
Main initiatives
Research into the potential for Community statistics on crime (inc. organised crime), victimisation & criminal justice to continue
19 – 20 February 2009
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6. Annual statistical work programme 2009
Key Priorities
Work will continue on developing a system of comparable EU statistics on crime, in accordance with the Commission's Action Plan on measuring crime and criminal justice. A new classification of crime types designed to improve the comparability of information between Member States will be discussed with the Member States; this new classification will be implemented gradually (in close co-operation with the Member States) as part of the regular collection of data and metadata.
Further improvements in efficiency will be sought by seeking synergies with other data collections (such as UNODC, EMCDDA, European Sourcebook) to reduce the respondent burden.
continued on next slide..
19 – 20 February 2009
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7. Annual statistical work programme 2009
Key Priorities (continued)
Account will be taken of the ongoing activities of the DG JLS Expert Group on data needs, and the indicators proposed by that group (specifically on 'new' types of crime) will be examined and implemented as far as possible.
The piloting of a specifically-developed common survey module on victimisation in Member States will be monitored. A special study taking into consideration the circumstances, practices as well as ongoing activities in the Member States will be undertaken in close collaboration with the Member States, taking account of the results of this experience, together with other recent European developments in the area of victimisation surveys, with a view to developing a general European approach to collecting data on victimisation.
19 – 20 February 2009
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8. Annual statistical work programme 2009
Objectives 2009
Ongoing work
Extend the collection of administrative data and metadata from Member States, such as on police-recorded crime, police numbers and prison populations, up to reference year 2007, and ensure proper dissemination
Continue to improve metadata (contents and structure)
Follow up the activities of the DG JLS Expert Group on data needs, develop methodologies for providing required indicators and implement where possible
New work
Implement a new crime classification in collection of data and metadata
Study developments in European victimisation surveys including piloting exercise of a common survey module, develop proposal for future approach to collection of victimisation data, in close collaboration with the Member States
19 – 20 February 2009
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9. Annual statistical work programme 2009
Actions that will simplify work or reduce the burden on member states and/or respondents
Explore synergies in existing data collections (Eurostat, UNODC, EMCDDA, European Sourcebook)
Note
Part of the Tenth United Nations Survey of Crime Trends and Operations of Criminal Justice Systems was conducted in partnership with Eurostat. This part (an Annex) related to supplementary information on homicides and thefts of motor vehicles.
Eurostat follows the work of the European Sourcebook Group on offence definitions and counting rules very closely and attends their meetings on a regular basis.
Participated in joint study with the EMCDDA and the European Sourcebook Group on definition of drugs offences
19 – 20 February 2009
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10. Eurostat Working Group & Task Forces
Working Group first met 1 – 2 March 2007; the 2nd meeting was held on 7 – 8 February 2008; this is the 3rd meeting,19 – 20 February 2009
All EU Member States, all EU candidate countries, all EU potential candidate countries, all EFTA/EEA countries, selected international organisations and selected experts invited
Task Force on victimisation met 28 – 29 June 2007; next meeting 4 – 5 June 2009
Task Force on “Crime data availability”; first meeting 7 – 8 November 2008 (Money-laundering) next meeting November 2009 (subject to be decided)
Regular reports to annual meeting of Directors of Social Statistics; last met on 13 January 2009 (special meeting to discuss the EPSS: European Programme of Social Surveys)
19 – 20 February 2009
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11. Mandate of the Eurostat Working Group
To help ensure the effective implementation within the Community Statistical Programme of the EU Action Plan on developing a comprehensive and coherent strategy to measure crime and criminal justice ...
To examine the indicators and tools proposed by the Expert Group … and to identify approaches for statistical data collections required to provide indicators and tools under the Action Plan
To prepare methodological approaches, to discuss guidelines … and monitor the collection of statistical data …
To report to the Directors of Social Statistics on the implementation of the Action Plan …
To identify specific tasks within the European Statistical System relevant to the Action Plan for delegation to task forces …
To serve as a forum of information within the European Statistical System concerning relevant statistical research and development activities …
19 – 20 February 2009
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12. ESSnet (ex CENEX) ESSnet = collaborative ESS networks
Concept emerged at the Directors General of the National Statistical Institutes (DGINS) Conference Palermo, September 2002
objective was to put together expertise scattered throughout the ESS organisations to develop specific actions which would benefit the whole system
disseminate results
February 2007 SPC meeting approved that an ESSnet project is based on: 
"A network of several ESS organisations aimed at providing results that will be beneficial to the whole ESS"
19 – 20 February 2009
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13. ESSnet Criteria for an eligible ESSnet project:
Involves several partners and results diffused to non participating NSAs
Focus on issues that answer to a European interest (excludes projects that do not contribute to the quality of ESS statistics)
Compatible with the 5 year programme
Cost effective (excludes projects with insufficient financial investment or duplication with other initiatives in the ESS)
Knowledge sharing, innovation and harmonisation
Sustainable (project should be sustainable beyond its duration; adequate measures should be put in place at national level)
Actions must be carried out by ESS organisations
19 – 20 February 2009
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14. ESSnet
Participation
ESS organisations (Eurostat and the statistical offices, ministries, agencies and central banks that collect official statistics in EU Member States, Iceland, Norway & Liechtenstein
possible to use the expertise of researchers and academia from universities through sub-contracting
19 – 20 February 2009
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15. ESSnet Structure of ESSnet work
Project oriented: final output is clearly described and fits into the yearly statistical programme, scope is defined, project is limited in duration to 1 or 2 years
funded by a Multi-Beneficiary Grant Agreement
Objective oriented: extension of the "project oriented" option, scope is broader, work programme revised at milestones, may be of longer duration
funded under a Framework Partnership Agreement
19 – 20 February 2009
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16. ESSnet Recent projects – as examples
Statistical Disclosure Control (2006–07)
Statistics Netherlands (CBS) with 7 partners and sub-contracted university
worked in the form of a virtual network each of its members contributing to the specific deliverables.
Combination of survey & administrative data (2006–08)
Statistics Italy (ISTAT) with CBS, CzSO, ST.AT & INE
4 main activities, each sub-coordinated by one of the participating countries
19 – 20 February 2009
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17. Thank you for your attention
19 – 20 February 2009