Discourses of Rurality in EU Spatial Policy: The European Spatial Development Perspective

The publication in 1999 of the European Spatial Development Perspective (ESDP) is a significant step towards European spatial planning. It follows a period of intergovernmental and inter‐institutional development of a framework and policies, which raises many issues about the normative and discoursive positions and constructions which are integrated into the process. The paper reviews the emergence of the ESDP, and explores how ’rurality‘ is being contested within the new European spatial discourse it contains. The Foucauldian discourse analytic approach focuses on the articulation of a new policy discourse within the text of the adopted ESDP document, but places this analysis within a broader consideration of the contested policy process. Discussing three key policy issues peripherality, a new urban‐rural partnership, and rural restructuring, the paper argues that the emphasis on competition, and the focus on urban areas and functional regions, raise clear concerns about the treatment of rurality. Key areas for further research are identified in response to the current vacuum of academic debate over rurality in European spatial policy.