Background and request for advice
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This advisory report examines the extent and ramifications of the differences in national policy on the physical environment between European Netherlands and the Caribbean Netherlands. In doing so, the report builds on the 2023 advisory report Elke regio telt! (i.e. Every region counts), in which the Rli — together with the Council for Public Administration and the Council for Public Health and Society — proposes a new approach to the large, growing and undesirable differences in prosperity and well-being between the various regions in European Netherlands.
The central question of the current advisory report is: What is the extent of undesirable differences or potential differences between European Netherlands and the Caribbean Netherlands when it comes to national policy on the physical environment and its implementation?
Explanation
Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba are an integral part of the Netherlands. All government tasks are divided between the public bodies (Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba) and the national government. The Caribbean Netherlands has no municipalities, provinces or water boards. In this context, the Schoof Cabinet refers to the national government's self-evident responsibility for the inhabitants of the Caribbean Netherlands, a region that is a fully fledged part of the Netherlands.
Findings
Our analysis results in the following four findings:
1. The three islands all face major and diverse challenges in the physical domain.
The Rli has identified major challenges, which differ between the three islands. For example, the housing supply and the quality of housing are substandard. The same applies to the road infrastructure, which is inadequate and of poor quality.
2. There has been an increase in the implementation of policy since 2019, but this has been mainly outside the realm of the physical environment.
Until 2019, the national government has worked according to the principle of ‘legislative restraint’ in initiating new policy for the Caribbean Netherlands. This gave all parties involved time to adjust to the new administrative relationships that were introduced on 10 October 2010.
After this restraint was lifted in 2019, the national government has been increasing its policy efforts for the Caribbean Netherlands, but these efforts are mainly focused on issues outside the physical domain.
Furthermore, the Rli is concerned about the ability to actually implement policies that have been formulated. This relates to the limited implementation capacity as well as to signs that the ‘administrative will’ to tackle bottlenecks is sometimes lacking. This is the case at both public bodies and national government.
3. Despite increased policy efforts on the part of the government, there are potentially undesirable differences between European and Caribbean Netherlands.
Across the physical environment, there are potentially undesirable differences in national policy commitment between the Caribbean Netherlands and European Netherlands. The advisory report gives four examples:
• Funding for investment, maintenance and replacement of physical infrastructure is inadequate. There is insufficient structural funding for regular tasks. Furthermore, the Mobility Fund and the Delta Fund are not being used for the Caribbean Netherlands.
• The Caribbean Netherlands is already facing the consequences of climate change, but policy-making on this issue is still in its infancy. In a sense, the Caribbean region, which is hardest hit by climate change, is lagging behind in the formulation of national policy.
• Connectivity between the islands is vital for the Caribbean Netherlands, but the national government is taking only limited responsibility in this area. This contrasts sharply with the national government's strong policy commitment to, for example, the accessibility of the Frisian Wadden Islands through concessions for ferry services and a reservation within the mobility fund for a future-proof solution to the accessibility problems of Ameland.
• The laws and regulations applicable to the Caribbean Netherlands do not reflect the integration of a healthy physical environment into the related policy that exists in the European Netherlands. Nor does the Caribbean Netherlands have the broad set of environmental values for protecting human health and the environment that we are familiar with in the European Netherlands.
4. Often, the comply-or-explain principle is either applied inaccurately or cannot be verified.
Since 2019, the national government has taken the position that policy intensifications for the European Netherlands should also be implemented in the Caribbean Netherlands, unless there are valid reasons for not doing so. The essence of this so-called comply-or-explain principle is that careful consideration must be given to whether policy intensification measures should either be implemented, not implemented or adapted. The Rli notes that the substantiation for new legislation and regulations is often very brief. In the case of new policy plans and programmes, there is often a complete lack of public substantiation.
Recommendations
In view of its findings, the Rli makes three recommendations in its advisory report, entitled ‘Working together to do better’. The title emphasises that the national government and public authorities can only successfully implement the recommendations by working together. The involvement of citizens and public bodies is of great importance in this regard.
1. Together with the public bodies, determine the ambition levels for the physical environment in 2050
The Rli recommends that the national government and the Caribbean islands, in consultation with citizens and businesses, jointly determine their ambitions for the quality of the physical environment. Although there is currently broad agreement on the division of tasks between the national government and the islands, the quality level to which these tasks must be carried out has not been established.
2. Strengthen the implementation power by improving the financial position of the public bodies and start a long-term cooperation programme between the national government and the public bodies
The joint ambition levels must be translated into appropriate government funding for the islands. However, implementation power is not just about money and capacity. It also requires administrative willingness to act and mutual trust. The formal division of roles and tasks should not be a strictly enforced boundary, but rather a starting point from which all parties do what is necessary to achieve the stated level of ambition. According to the Rli, this should include a long-term and substantial cooperation programme between the national government and the three Caribbean islands. This should be linked to the National Programme on dynamic regions launched by the Cabinet, which currently focuses solely on the European Netherlands.
3. Apply the comply-or-explain principle in a consistent manner and at the start of the policy cycle
The Rli advocates that the Caribbean Netherlands be included in policy-making for the physical environment from the outset. Although this has already been agreed since 2019, it often doesn't happen in practice. The national government, therefore, should draw up a concise overview of all policy intentions for the physical environment, at fixed times each year, with specifications of how it intends to include the Caribbean Netherlands. The three Caribbean islands, in turn, should be given the opportunity to request their participation, for example, in subsidy schemes or incentive programmes that the national government intends to apply to European Netherlands only.
Publication
The advisory report was presented on 13 June 2025 to Mr Lapperre, Director-General for Kingdom Relations, on behalf of the Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, as well as to the Ministers of Economic Affairs, Climate Policy and Green Growth, Housing and Spatial Planning, Infrastructure and Water Management, and Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature. The report was presented in parallel to the executive councils of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba and the chair of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
F.l.t.r. Rli-chairman Jan Jacob van Dijk and director-general Kingdom Relations Roald Laperre of the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations. Photo: Sander Foederer.
Information
If you would like to respond or for more information, please contact Joris Stok, project leader, at: joris.stok@rli.nl or +31 06 132 46 502.