Fundamentally I agree with the Deputy's observations. GDP and GNP are essentially economic barometers or measurements. As to having a wider range of social and environmental indicators, the Government is conscious of the need to enhance the measurement indicators and introduce new measurement procedures, for example, the quarterly household survey. This will be done on a modular basis and on different occasions we will examine different aspects of the social picture.
The policy agreement A Government of Renewal stated that the Government was committed to work towards a new set of indicators of sustainable economic development which will take account of environmental and social factors and these indicators would be used alongside the existing measurements of economic activity such as GDP, GNP, etc.
In April 1996 the ESRI published a study, commissioned by the Department of the Environment, on the issues and options arising in connection with this commitment. It dealt with environmental and social issues. As regards environmental indicators, a work programme towards the definition of sustainable development indicators is being developed by the Department of the Environment; it is being finalised and will be completed shortly. As regards social indicators, the ESRI study discussed their selection and quantification and recommended the adoption of the OECD list of social indicators as a basis for a scheme for Ireland. These seek to go beyond the traditional national accounting measures by focusing on the distribution of resources and extending measurement to include non-economic aspects. The ESRI noted that, while much of the information for several of these indicators is already available for Ireland, it is in many cases available only at long-term intervals — for example, the census of population — or on a basis which makes it less comparable with other countries.
The quarterly household survey will deal with social problems such as crime, other social areas such as income, leisure, household consumption, transport, social mobility, social contact, housing and the general work environment. By and large, we are introducing a more comprehensive range of measurements to deal with the points the Deputy makes.
As regards unwaged work, particularly work which up to now has not been quantified in economic or social terms — the work of housewives or others who work in the home — this was addressed in Partnership 2000 for inclusion under employment and competitiveness. Paragraph 5.11 commits us to the development of statistical methods to evaluate the full extent of the contribution of unpaid work, mainly done by women and their contribution to the national economy, including their contributions to the remunerated and domestic sectors, will be undertaken during the course of the Partnership.
On foot of this commitment the CSO will undertake a pilot time-use survey using draft questionnaires and methods prepared by Eurostat. Such surveys are designed to measure how people allocate their time to different social and economic activities. The 1997 pilot survey will use only a relatively small sample and will therefore not produce comprehensive results. It is designed mainly to establish the feasibility and cost of conducting such a survey on a larger, national, representative basis. We are moving in that direction but it takes time to draft the modules and quantify the amount of money involved. The Government's intention is to have as accurate as possible a barometer of the relative values of work, whether waged or unwaged.