The willing, the unwilling and the unable – explaining implementation of the EU Biofuels Directive

Abstract

In this article we test current knowledge about policy implementation in multilevel governance systems and focus on the debated case of transport biofuels (EU Directive 2003/30/EC). We probe a set of hypotheses in a qualitative comparative analysis, offering a systematic comparison of 10 member states between 2003 and 2006. The findings show that implementation of the EU biofuels policy is a complex phenomenon where combinations of causal conditions, and not single conditions, produce the outcome. Implementation is more likely when three favourable conditions are present, when policy frames and content between EU and national levels match, when a consensual policy style is used and the most important actors are included. These findings are in agreement with previous studies. Non-implementation, on the other hand, is explained by a dichotomy between member states unable to implement because they lack capacity and those member states unwilling to implement even if they can.