Governing with multiple policy instruments?

Abstract

Policy instruments are the tools that policy makers use to attain their objectives. The EU pursues its environmental policy objectives mainly by using regulatory instruments, in part because its Treaties constrain its ability to use more distributive and redistributive forms of policy. However, over time, it has adopted a number of ‘New’ Environmental Policy Instruments (NEPIs) such as emissions trading and voluntary agreements. Despite this, policy makers are more likely to govern with a wider range of instruments at national than EU level. Moreover, for various reasons, regulation is likely to remain the preferred instrument of choice at EU level for the foreseeable future. This finding raises new challenges in relation to the regular calls made for ‘smarter mixes’ of regulatory and non-regulatory instruments in EU environmental policy.