This issue of the Insee Références collection follows on from the first one, published in 2008 during the french presidency of the European Union. The result of a collaboration between public statistical institutions, it gathers a body of economic and social data allowing a comparison between France and its European partners. It contains five reports offering a detailed analysis of five key European themes : the economic situation of the EU countries, particulary since the 2008 crisis ; inequalities, poverty and social protection ; the new European classification of socio-economic categories ; early school leavers ; and foreign trade in food products. Twenty or so fact sheets then provide a general European overview and adress issues relating to the population, the living conditions of households, the labour market and the economy.
