Public money for public goods: The role of ideas in driving agriculture policy in the EU and post-Brexit UK

The role played by concepts and ideas in driving policy transformations has been much discussed in the political science literature. This paper presents a case study of ideas and the extent to which they drive policy change, drawing on the example of the Public Money for Public Goods (PMPG) principle in relation to the reform of EU and UK agriculture policy. We assess the factors which have promoted the adoption of the PMPG principle and the extent to which it is currently being realised under the EU's Common Agricultural Policy and the UK's post-Brexit agriculture policies. Drawing on a range of expert interviews, we find that policy concepts such as this have the capacity to be utilised by policymakers when looking to solve 'wicked' policy problems, and once mobilised, can gradually gain acceptance amongst stakeholders, lobbyists and policymakers over time. However, we also report evidence of dilution and mission creep, with a gap emerging between the original idea, its interpretation, and how it is realised in the messy world of policy advocacy and resistance. We conclude that advocates of the PMPG principle need to seize some recent windows of opportunities under an emerging set of post-Brexit set of land management schemes to further develop and implement this important policy idea.

Automated summary

This paper examines the role of concepts and ideas in driving policy transformations, using the reform of EU and UK agriculture policy as a case study. The study finds that policy concepts can be utilized by policymakers to address complex policy problems and gradually gain acceptance among stakeholders and policymakers. However, there is also evidence of the dilution and mission creep of these concepts, resulting in a gap between the original idea, its interpretation, and its implementation in the messy world of policy advocacy and resistance. The study suggests that advocates of the Public Money for Public Goods (PMPG) principle should take advantage of emerging post-Brexit land management schemes to further develop and implement this important policy idea.