Archive:Europe 2020 indicators - United Kingdom
- Data from July 2013. Most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables.
This article is part of a set of statistical articles based on the Eurostat publication Smarter, greener, more inclusive - Indicators to support the Europe 2020 strategy. It provides recent statistics on the Europe 2020 strategy of the European Union (EU), focusing on the situation in United Kingdom.
Main statistical findings
The United Kingdom has not adopted specific national Europe 2020 targets apart from the already existing climate change and renewable energies commitments. Despite the deterioration in the employment rate during the crisis (2008 to 2011), the indicator increased to 74.2 % in 2012, exceeding the EU average of 68.5 %. In the period 2008 to 2012 the UK managed to increase the tertiary educational attainment rate despite the adverse economic situation in the EU. After wide fluctuations over the past years, in 2012 the indicator on early school leavers dropped from 15 % to 13.5 %. The development of the social exclusion indicator has been much more tentative, with the number of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2012 remaining very close to its 2008 level. Following slight improvements in 2009 and 2010, in 2011 R&D expenditure fell to 1.75 %, reaching 2008 levels. The country recorded an 8 % reduction in GHG emissions between 2005 and 2010; further reductions of a similar amount are needed for the target of – 16 % to be achieved by 2020. With a gap of 11.2 percentage points in 2012, the UK recorded the second largest distance to its renewable energies target (after France).
Data sources and availability
More information about the origin of the data and the calculation of indicators can be obtained via the Europe 2020 indicators dedicated website.
Under 'Tables', click on the icons next to the indicators:
- 'Explanatory texts (metadata)' for a detailed overview of the collection and compilation methods;
- 'Information on the leaf' for data availability per country.
A more general overview of quality procedures can be found in Implementation of standard reference metadata for indicators - the ESMS Indicator Profile (ESMS-IP).
Context
The European Commission's 2013 country-specific recommendations
- Employment: Step up measures for improving the quality of vocational training and increasing the skills of young people in order to fight youth unemployment.
- Poverty: Ensure the tax-benefit system provides adequate incentives to work; increase the quality and affordability of childcare services.
- Others: Continue consolidation efforts, while promoting growth-enhancing expenditure; take measures for increasing the housing supply while ensuring sustainable mortgage lending; encourage bank lending to businesses; increase investments in transport and energy infrastructure, in particular renewables.
See also
Further Eurostat information
Publications
- Smarter, greener, more inclusive - indicators to support the Europe 2020 strategy (online publication, also downloadable as PDF file)
Main tables
Dedicated section
Methodology / Metadata
- Towards robust quality management for European Statistics - Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council COM(2011) 211 final.
Other information
- Regulation 223/2009 of 11 March 2009 on European statistics