Prospects for CAP reform after 2020

Even though the ink is hardly dry on the 2013 CAP reform, thoughts are turning already to the prospects for the next reform. I have already discussed some aspects relevant to the CAP post 2020 in this post, focusing in particular on a possible timetable of reform and some political economy issues likely to be important in determining the scope and ambition of any revision to the current regulations. I subsequently elaborated that post as a chapter in a book edited by Jo Swinnen on The Political Economy of the 2014-2020 Common Agricultural Policy: An Imperfect Storm which will be published next month (more on that book in due course). Another good read on this topic is Allan Buckwell’s recent thoughtful contribution putting forward ideas for a future CAP.
I recently returned to this topic when I was asked to give a presentation on the prospects for CAP reform after 2020. In this presentation I discuss some factors likely to determine the economic status of agriculture in the coming years, and I highlight some of the main issues – direct payments, greening, soil health and climate policy – that should be on the agenda for the next CAP reform (of course, this is not a complete list but is deliberately selective for reasons of time). However, those seeking reform will have to address a widespread sense of ‘reform fatigue’, and I still think that the more likely outcome will be a continuation of the current policy with minor tweaking into the next multi-annual financial framework period.
The presentation can be viewed here; to download, open in Slideshare by clicking on the owl icon bottom right.

This post was written by Alan Matthews.
Photo credit: Irish Independent