6. 3. 91 Official Journal of the European Communities No L 59/21 COUNCIL DECISION of 25 February 1991 setting up the European Advisory Committee on statistical information in the economic and social spheres ' (91/116/EEC) THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, Having regard to the draft decision submitted by the Commission (1), Having regard to the opinion of the European Parli- ament (%), : . Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (%), Whereas the implementation, monitoring and assessment of Community policies depend to a great extent on the availability of reliable statistics in the economic and social spheres ; Whereas in April 1989 the Commission submitted to the Council a communication on the adoption of a Commu- nity statistical policy; ' [ Whereas, on the basis of this communication and acting on a proposal from the Commission, after receiving the European 'Parliament’s opinion the Council adopted on 19 June 1989 a resolution on the implementation of a - plan of priority actions in the field of statistical informa- tion for the period 1989-1992 (%); Whereas by its Decision 89/382/Euratom (°), the Council established the Statistical Programme Committee, which comprises the representatives of the Statistical Institutes of the Member States and is chaired by a representative of the Commission (namely the Director-General of the Statistical Office of the European Communities) ; whereas this committee is responsible for coordinating the work, resources, schedules and methods involved in Community and national statistical programmes ; Whereas in order to achieve the objectives set for the European Communities, in pamcular the establishement of the single market provided for in the Single European Act, leading representatives from the scientific, economic and social fields must be consulted regularly with a view () OJ No C 208, 21. 8. 1990, p. 9. () OJ No C 19, 28. 1. 1991. () OJ No C 31, 6. 2. 1991, p. 25. () OJ No C 161, 28. 6. 1989, p. 1. () OJ No L 181, 28. 6. 1989, p. 47. to determining the objectives, priorities and nature of the information required to support Community policies; Whereas, in almost all Member States, there are consulta- tive bodies of users and producers of statistical informa- tion concerned mainly with the problems of the countries in question; Whereas it is therefore necessary to establish a European Advisory Committee on Economic and Social Statistical Information, made up of representatives of the producers and users of this information, whose task it will be to help the Council and the Commission to coordinate the objec- tives of the Community’s statistical information policy, HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: Article 1- A European Advisory Committee on Statistical Informa- tion in the Economic and Social Spheres, hereinafter called the Committee, shall be set up. Its task shall be to assist the Council and the Commission in the coordina- tion of the objectives of the Community’s statistical infor- mation policy, taking into account user requirements and - the costs borne by the information producers. Article 2 The Committee shall consider and make suggestions on projects to the implemented and the resources needed to achieve the objectives of the statistical information policy decided upon by the Community.  The Committee shall deliver an opinion on the Commu- nity’s statistical programme and on the way in which it is designed and monitored. In particular, it shall comment on: — the relevance of statistical programmes to the require- ments of European integration, as expressed by the Community institutions, national and regional autho- rities and the various economic and socnal categories and by scientific circles ;- — cooperation, at organizational and planning levels, between the various bodies which, as a whole, comprise the Community statistical infrastructure ; — the costs of the sectoral statistical programmes, in- cluding both the costs directly incurred by Commu- nity, national and regional authorities and the cost to ~ those who have to provide the basic information ;