1. Contact: nadim.ahmad@oecd.org
MEASURING THE SIZE OF THE PUBLIC SECTOR Meeting user needs for improved data on public corporations National Accounts Working Party Meeting Paris 4-6 November 2009
Contact:

2. Background
Delineation of government and public sector long-standing interest to policy makers
Recognised in new Chapter 22 of 2008 SNA
But recent events have heightened the need for more, and more comparable, information on the public sector – specifically, public corporations.
Of particular policy relevance are debt, deficit and employment statistics.

3. 2008 SNA
Provides detailed guidance but recognises that economic circumstances differ and so potential scope for different treatment exists.
Public corporations are those where government/public sector has ‘control’ and with most output provided at market prices.
EU countries adopt 50% rule for market-test and SNA provides rule-of-thumb for ownership (control) – 50%.
But it is not clear what most countries do in practice.

4. Responding to User Needs
OECD Directorate for Financial and Enterprise Affairs questionnaire.
OECD Directorate Workshop on Public Sector debt.
Eurostat Financial Accounts Working Group – voluntary data collection on PCs.
IMF Public Sector Debt Statistics Guide.

5. First Step STD would like to:
Circulate Eurostat questionnaire to OECD non EU countries; and
Gain access to data already supplied to Eurostat

6. First Step

7. Following up
If support from delegates exists, STD would like to develop a follow-up questionnaire, with Eurostat, that targets:
Employees and further information on criteria used to determine control
The public domain concept – e.g. including private corporations where government is the key customer/funder or where government provides contingent guarantees.
And information on corporations where government has a significant but not controlling, stake