Ex post evaluation of state aid

Analysis and evaluation of outcomes form a crucial part of every policy cycle. Ex-post evaluation provides insights in the real impact of a policy, contributes to organizational learning and monitors resource allocation with the aim to make it more efficient. With the introduction of the revised General Block Exemption Regulation, evaluation now also forms part of the State aid policy framework. Obviously, the choice of a proper methodology is crucial for its success. This chapter looks at the role of economic analysis in State aid control and the policy context for the introduction of evaluation, discusses possible methodologies and proposes multi-criteria analysis as a possible new tool in this context.