EXPLAINING THE HEALTH CHECK:THE BUDGET, WTO, AND MULTIFUNCTIONAL POLICY PARADIGM REVISITED

Carsten Daugbjerg and Alan Swinbank ()

No 44818, 109th Seminar, November 20-21, 2008, Viterbo, Italy from European Association of Agricultural Economists

Abstract: Three potential explanations of past CAP reforms have been identified in the literature: a budget constraint, pressure from GATT/WTO negotiations or commitments, and a paradigm shift emphasising agriculture’s provision of public goods. The presentation, content and context of the Health Check reform proposals of 2007/08 are assessed. The proposals are probably more ambitious than first supposed. The Health Check was not primarily driven by budget pressures; the European Commission’s wish to adopt an offensive negotiating stance in the closing phases of the Doha Round was a more likely explanatory factor. The EU’s response to the commodity price spikes in 2008, and its Health Check proposals, suggest that the supposed switch from a state-assisted policy paradigm to the multifunctional paradigm is more apparent than real. The shape and purpose of the CAP post- 2013 is contested, with quite divergent views among the Member States

Keywords: Agricultural and Food Policy; International Relations/Trade; Political Economy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2008-11-13
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:eaa109:44818

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.44818

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