S4 Ep14: EU budget: Scope to reform Common Agricultural Policy

Ongoing negotiations over the next multiannual financial
framework represent an opportunity for the EU to support its new
priorities, such as increased investment in border control and
defence.


However, new investment necessitates either an expansion in the
size of the budget or cuts to other sectors – each a difficult
sell to different Member States. Brexit compounds the problem of
finding funds for the seven-year framework, which will run from
2021-27.


The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) accounts for a sizeable
portion of the current budget, and Bruegel director Guntram Wolff
here elaborates on the possibility of freeing up more space in
the budget by freezing funding for CAP – either in real or
nominal terms – based on a research paper he has co-authored with
Bruegel senior fellow Zsolt Darvas.


Joining the conversation in this episode of ‘The Sound of
Economics’ is Lars Hoelgaard, former deputy director general at
the Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development,
who explores specific options for reforming the CAP.