ABS launches consultation on 'critical' economic statistics

Wednesday, 30 May 2012

It's no secret that facts and figures have an important role to play when it comes to shaping key decisions on Australia's economic policies.

But the issue of exactly what type of statistics should be used to guide economic planning is up for debate, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), which has just launched a consultation paper to help determine the data it deems "the nation's most critical".

This week (May 29), the ABS launched a consultation - which will be open to statistical data users, agencies and members of the public - that will eventually shape the ABS's Essential Statistical Assets.

Peter Harper, the ABS's deputy statistician, asserted that this will be an elite sub-set of statistics that have an essential role in shaping public policy, as well as the delivery of services.

The preliminary list divides statistics into four main categories: Definitely In, Probably In, Possibly In and Possibly Out.

At the moment, the Definitely In list includes data on average weekly earnings, land statistics, population, gross domestic product and statistics on household income, including details on expenditure.

In contrast, the Possibly Out list includes details on household recycling, business approvals, business IT innovation, and sports and cultural participation.

Submissions on the new data can be made before September 14 2012.