The Common Agricultural Policy is due to be reformed by 2013. After a wide-ranging public debate the Commission presented on 18 November 2010 a Communication on "The CAP towards 2020", which outlines options for the future CAP and launches the debate with the other institutions and with stakeholders. The presentation of legal proposals is foreseen for 2011. Final decisions about these proposals can be expected in 2012. It will be the first large decision making process under the Lisbon Treaty, meaning that both the Council of Ministers of Agriculture and the European Parliament have to decide in a co-decision procedure.In this course you will get insight in the background, recent developments and impact of the Common Agricultural Policy. Old participants mark the course as an overview of the whole field of CAP in a pressure cooker.