The European Added Value of EU Spending

The authors of this exploratory study underscore the European added value (EAV) argument by putting a price tag on the savings and losses incurred by EU spending. In research hitherto carried out, European added value has largely been defined on the basis of qualitative criteria. This made the concept fuzzy as it became possible to prove the added value of a European policy as well as the opposite. It was the authors' aim to operationalise the concept to be able to rigorously quantify European added value in the previously untested fields of agricultural policy, foreign affairs, and defence. This study has developed definitions and concepts that might serve as a guideline for best practices in future EAV studies. RAND Europe contributes a study, "The Fiscal Added Value of Integrated European Land Forces," on the potential cost savings from integrating land force personnel across EU Member States. Savings of Euro 6.5 Billion across EU could be achieved with the 'middle scenario' for integrated/harmonised land forces, without affecting military capability.