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Work programme 2024–2025

With the themes in the work programme, the Council aims to make a valuable contribution to the quality of the living environment and infrastructure. Because the challenges in the physical living environment are so closely intertwined, most of the Council’s advisory reports transcend the boundaries of the four ministries in the physical domain.

Themes for advice

The following three advisory processes from the 2023-2024 work programme will continue into 2024:

  • Long-term spatial consequences of climate adaptation
  • Juridification of the social debate on sustainability and the environment
  • Overall well-being in environmental policy practice

The “sustainable construction” advisory process from the 2023–2024 work programme is expected to be launched in early 2024. The Council expects to issue its unsolicited advisory report on “System failures in policy on the living environment” in mid-2024 (it published an exploratory study of this problem in December 2023).

Finally, at the request of the Ministers of the Interior and Kingdom Relations (BZK), Infrastructure and Water Management (IenW), and Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV), the Council is currently preparing an advisory report on “the national approach to foundation problems”. This report will be delivered by no later than 1 March 2024, as per the request for advice.

The five new advisory reports that the Council will deal with in the 2024–2025 work programme are:

  1. How can we comply with the Montreal Pledge?
  2. Main Energy Structure
  3. Future-proof drinking water supply
  4. Inclusive sustainability
  5. Working for a sustainable living environment through government shareholdings

The Council also plans to organise a conference in mid-2024, on the occasion of the appointment of new Council members. The title of the conference will be:

6. The Netherlands after remodelling, conference

For several of the Council's advisory reports, the question arose of whether the Caribbean Netherlands – the BES islands – should be included in the scope of the report. In each case, the conclusion is that it is not appropriate to include these three municipalities in the regular advisory processes, due to their very specific living environment issues, which differ greatly from those of the European Netherlands. Because the issues addressed in our advisory reports are also relevant (or may be) to the Caribbean Netherlands, the Council will launch a preliminary study in early 2024 on how to include that part of the Kingdom in policy on the living environment.

In addition to the above topics, the Council will in the coming years supplement its regular work with advice based on the interim and final outcomes of evaluation of the Environment and Planning Act. For this purpose, the Council has been temporarily supplemented by two Council members who are also members of the Environment and Planning Act Evaluation Committee. Arrangements will be made with the Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations on the programming of these advisory reports and the questions to be addressed.

To see the latest status of the pending advisory reports, go to the "in preparation" webpage (in Dutch). 

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illustration of cogwheels that interlock with drawings of agriculture, infrastructure, housing, consultation, transport, energy
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The present work programme outlines the themes for advice for 2024–2025.
Homepage Teasertekst
The Council draws up an annual work programme that is adopted by the Ministers of Infrastructure and Water Management (IenW), Economic Affairs and Climate (EZK), Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV), and the Interior and Kingdom Relations (BZK).

Bridging the Implementation Gap

Subtitel
Tackling Factors Impeding Policy for Physical Living Environment
19 December 2023
Teasertekst
The Netherlands faces major challenges in the physical living environment, such as building large numbers of homes or dealing with the consequences of a changing climate. Some of these challenges have been ongoing for decades, and they are becoming increasingly urgent.
Adviesnummer
2023/07
Datum verschijning

Background and request for advice

The Netherlands faces major challenges in the physical living environment, such as building large numbers of homes or dealing with the consequences of a changing climate. Some of these challenges have been ongoing for decades, and they are becoming increasingly urgent, with the term “crisis” being used more and more frequently. Although policy objectives and measures have been defined in numerous areas, they are often not implemented, or not fully or on time. There are all sorts of plans, but nothing much actually comes of them. 

This failure to achieve government goals in so many important policy fields – or to do so fully or on time – calls for further analysis. Why are the matters agreed on as policy not actually being implemented, or only far too late? Why is actual implementation so problematical? If it is clear exactly where the impediments lie, then one can “twist the right control knobs” so as to bring about improvement. In the light of these considerations, we formulated the following questions for this report to answer: 

The main question addressed in this advisory report is “Just what are the impediments to implementing policy for the living environment? How can implementation be improved so as to achieve the goals of policy for the living environment?

Two construction workers on a construction site

Explanation

For the purpose of this advisory report, we conducted ten case studies on implementation problems within the domain of the physical living environment. On that basis, we identified five impeding factors that complicate and delay implementation of policy, often simultaneously:

  1. Accumulation, and hence complexity, of policy
  2. Hesitancy about taking the necessary steps
  3. Inadequate organisation of implementation
  4. Unequal distribution of costs and benefits
  5. Structural scarcity of human resources (HR)

Our main recommendation focuses on placing policy and implementation on an equal footing. This recommendation forms a kind of overarching umbrella above our other recommendations:

Place policy and implementation on an equal footing

  • We advocate a radical reappraisal of implementation, with policy-makers and implementing parties being placed on an equal footing. 
  • When drawing up policy measures, maximum use should be made of insights derived from actual implementation. 
  • Implementing parties must be able to indicate authoritatively the conditions under which policy is actually capable of implementation.
  • Placing policy and implementation on an equal footing and actually implementing policy plans will contribute to public trust in government.

Our other recommendations for dealing with impediments when tackling challenges in the physical living are:

Give implementing parties a structural role in policy development 

  • Action is needed to involve implementers as an equal party in policy development right from the initiation phase.
  • Central government implementing organisations must be involved, as standard, in consultations between top-level civil servants.
  • The Rli also envisions an important role for the Secretary-General (SG) of each policy department, who should ensure that other parties that contribute to implementation are also involved in policy development at an early stage. 
  • Safeguards are needed to prevent local and regional authorities being assigned implementation objectives without adequate funding, for example. This requires a strong coordinating role on the part of the Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations (MinBZK) in allocating objectives within local and regional authorities, for example by requiring him or her to co-sign policy plans in order to prevent local and regional authorities being overburdened or under-represented during policy development.
  • Given that many challenges need to be successfully tackled in the various regions of the country, it is important for the Minister to enhance administrative cooperation at regional level. 

Work, organise, and draw up a shared agenda based on the objective concerned

  • Policy accumulation will be less of a problem if the implementing parties have a clear idea of what the shared ambitions and goals actually are. 
  • A clear statement of the objective concerned will assist in organising and prioritising accumulated policies. A shared agenda can then be drawn up on that basis. 
  • The strategies on spatial planning and the environment set out in the new Environment and Planning Act [Omgevingswet] can assist in this. They are by far the best way, after all, to articulate the narrative of the objective, area, or region concerned.

Divide up roles, tasks, and relationships based on the specific objective concerned

  • The underlying problem in many cases of implementation failure is that it is unclear to the policy-makers and implementers which of them should take action when it comes to choices about priorities and the allocation of funds. 
  • It is crucial for there to be clear arrangements regarding these points at the interface between policy and implementation, on an issue-by-issue basis.

Organise cooperation in such a way that implementers feel confident about taking decisions, even in the face of uncertainties

  • It is important to develop a setting in which parties feel confident enough – even when the situation becomes tense – to seek solutions and take difficult decisions.
  • This means that arrangements are needed regarding the culture of cooperation. 
  • Trust and transparency need to be at the heart of cooperation so that dilemmas, doubts, and uncertainties can be raised for discussion unhindered. 

Find ways to determine the costs and benefits of objectives in the living environment more accurately and to distribute them better

  • When working on objectives in the living environment, benefits often “drain away” or revenues end up with parties that do not contribute to a given development. This hampers a proactive approach. 
  • Greater attention needs to be paid to sharing knowledge when applying land policy mechanisms, such as compulsory purchase or the establishment of municipal preferential rights. 
  • More attention also needs to be paid to innovative ways of financing projects in the living environment.

Adopt a smart approach to dealing with the structural scarcity of human resources

  • The scarcity of human resources is structural and unavoidable. 
  • It is therefore necessary to adopt a smart approach to dealing with that scarcity, thus making it possible to both alleviate the scarcity itself and greatly reduce the problems that it causes. 
  • Creating a pool of experts and sharing know-how and specialists (regionally) can provide a solution. 
  • More can also be done to standardise the work involved.

Schedule

The Rli published its advisory report “Bridging the implementation gap: tackling factors impeding policy for the physical living environment” on 19 December 2023. The advisory report was submitted that same day to the Ministers of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, Infrastructure and Water Management, Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, the Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate, the Minister for Climate and Energy, and the Presidents of the Senate and the House of Representatives. 

More information

For more information about the advisory report or to comment, please contact Bart Swanenvleugel, at bart.swanenvleugel@rli.nl, or on +31 (0)6 52012691.

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Phasing Out the Throw-Away Society

24 November 2023
Teasertekst
The Dutch government must embark on policies aimed at phasing out the throw-away society, which stands in the way of the transition to a sustainable and circular economy. This requires that the government be active, coordinate matters, and set a good example.
Adviesnummer
2023/05
Datum verschijning

Background and request for advice

Globally – thus including in the Netherlands – more and more stuff is being thrown away. This involves mainly cheap, non-sustainable goods produced in low-wage countries, and often discarded after only short-term use. This leads to all kinds of negative effects on the living environment: environmental pollution, CO2 emissions, declining biodiversity, depletion of natural resources, and exploitation of labour.

The advisory report focuses on three commodity flows: clothing, furniture, and consumer electronics. Due to its low price and quality, clothing – especially “fast fashion” – has become a disposable product in the eyes of many consumers. The same is true for home accessories, “fast furniture”, and consumer electronics. Production of these involves all kinds of cost cutting, resulting in products that don’t last very long. Consumers are also enticed – for instance by rock-bottom offers – to purchase throw-away products. All these factors encourage throw-away behaviour.

The main question addressed in this advisory report is “How can the Netherlands, both nationally and in a European context, ensure phasing out of the throw-away society, as part of the transition to the production and use of sustainable consumer goods? What interventions are needed to make this possible?

Many people in a store on Black Friday

Explanation

There is an increasing focus in Dutch government policy on making the economy more sustainable. There is very little focus, however, on countering the throw-away society, which constitutes a barrier to the necessary transition to a sustainable and circular economy. It is therefore important that policy should also be aimed at phasing it out. You can’t have one without the other. 

The throw-away society is an inherent component of our current economic system. Companies strive to sell as many goods as possible for the lowest possible price, a revenue model that ultimately leads to an economic ‘race to the bottom’. Fast fashion, for example, is extremely focused on low costs and therefore also on low product quality. Much of the cheaply produced clothing soon starts to wear out and is quickly discarded. The same trend is apparent with furniture and electronics. 

We identify four mechanisms that sustain the throw-away trend: 

  • The external costs of products (environmental impact, poor working conditions) are not factored into the price of the product.
  • Producers' selection as regards materials and production methods means that products have an ever-shorter lifespan.
  • Product design takes no account of what happens to the product, and the raw materials used in it, during the disposal phase. 
  • Many people find it difficult to make a responsible choice from the range of products available (including online) due to the lack of clear information about products and because they are exposed to temptation and deception. 

The Rli offers five recommendations for reversing the throw-away trend. Our focus is on policy interventions for the next five years. 

Enforce sustainable production processes, on the way to true product pricing

  • At EU level, advocate ambitious content of the Ecodesign Regulation and the resulting product requirements, as well as the European Transparency (CSDDD and CSRD) Directives.
  • Ensure ambitious content and implementation of the national legislation for International Responsible Business Conduct ('International RBC') (IMVO).

Strive for longer-lasting products by focusing on reuse and repair 

  • Promote a professional repair market by mandating that authorised repairers have access to spare parts from all electronics chains, and abolish the VAT on repairs.
  • Make second-hand shops and second-hand goods more accessible and visible.

Strive for value retention through reuse, high-grade recycling, and improved EPR schemes

  • Strive for improved, larger-scale collection, sorting, and recycling of discarded products, for example by means of an obligatory doorstep return system for large products (washing machines, mattresses) and a deposit scheme for batteries.
  • Ensure greater control of the content and creation of extended producer responsibility (EPR) schemes. Set more stringent requirements for high-grade recycling and ensure that improved product design and reuse become worthwhile.

Assist consumers to make deliberate choices and protect them against manipulation

  • Introduce a lifespan label and a repair label with information on the expected useful life and reparability of products.
  • Combat greenwashing and ban or discourage rock-bottom pricing of products that mostly encourages impulsive purchases.

As government, take the lead, coordinate matters, and set a good example

  • Make clear how consumers can contribute to sustainability themselves, and create the necessary conditions for them to do so.
  • Support the business community in reducing harmful impacts of their products and production chains. Establish sectoral support centres.
  • Ensure more robust cross-ministry coordination and control of policy aimed at phasing out the throw-away society. Free up substantially larger funding and capacity for that purpose.

The above recommendations focus on the next five years. In the medium term, however, more will be needed. The government will need to effectuate fundamental changes in order to bring about the transition to a sustainable economy that operates within the planetary boundaries.

Schedule

On 24 November 2023, Black Friday, the Council published its advisory report Phasing Out the Throw-Away Society, which it had presented to the State Secretary for Infrastructure and Water Management, Vivianne Heijnen, the day before. The report was also presented to the Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, Micky Adriaansens, and the Presidents of the Senate and House of Representatives.

Photo of State Secretary for Infrastructure and Water Management, Vivianne Heijnen, receiving the advisory report "Phasing Out the Throw-away Society" from Council member and committee chair André van der Zande
State Secretary for Infrastructure and Water Management, Vivianne Heijnen, takes receipt of the advisory report Phasing Out the Throw-Away Society on 23 November 2023. Left to right: State Secretary Heijnen and André van der Zande (Rli Council Member and Chair of the committee) Photo: Fred Ernst

More information

For more information about the advisory report or to comment, please contact the project leader, Bas Waterhout, at bas.waterhout@rli.nl, or on +31 (0)6 21178802.

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Working together

Subtitel
Opting for future-proof business parks
31 October 2023
Teasertekst
Business parks offer crucial opportunities to make businesses and society more sustainable. To capitalise on these opportunities, the government needs to set clear goals and support business owners.
Adviesnummer
2023/04

Background and request for advice
 

Regular business parks play a crucial role in the Dutch economy and society. The 3,400 regular business parks in the Netherlands generate about 30% of GDP and account for 28% of jobs. Overall, they cover 10% of the built-up area of the Netherlands.

Yet they are behind schedule when it comes to sustainability goals. Reducing and greening energy use are lagging behind, as are promoting circularity, climate adaptation, and restoring biodiversity. There are also questions about how efficiently space is used and about maintaining landscape quality.

For a long time, business parks received relatively little attention – unlike industrial clusters (heavy industry), for example. But recently there has been a growing focus on business parks on the part of the Dutch state, provinces, and municipalities. However, that focus is mainly on the landscape effects of large-scale distribution centres – more and more “big boxes” – and the competition for space between business parks and other functions that require space, such as housing. There is no policy aimed at making business parks themselves more sustainable, integrating the various sustainability challenges. This is a missed opportunity, since the unique character of business parks, namely the location of multiple, different types of businesses in close proximity to each other, offers major opportunities to accelerate sustainability improvements for businesses and society.

The main question addressed in this advisory report is “What policies and instruments can be used to accelerate efforts to improve the sustainability of business parks and the businesses located there? And what role should central government, other authorities, market players and society play in this?”

Business park Grote Polder Zoeterwoude

Explanation
 

Like the rest of the Netherlands, businesses need to become more sustainable. Sadly the progress being made in this area is too slow. This is understandable, as many business owners have their hands full running their business. On top of this, business owners are increasingly facing scarcity of raw materials, grid capacity, human resources and space.

Sustainability is part of the solution to many of these problems. The business park is a perfect level of scale to help business owners do this while at the same time accelerating the Netherlands' sustainability efforts. Policies that exploit these opportunities are currently lacking.

Businesses can take some measures independently, such as optimising business processes. But other measures require cooperation. Take sustainable electricity generation. The Dutch electricity grid is overcrowded, making it increasingly difficult for businesses to purchase power and supply sustainably generated power. An energy hub makes businesses less dependent on the grid. Businesses can use the hub to supply self-generated energy to each other and collectively store surpluses. Both the businesses and society profit from the energy hub: businesses by making their operations more sustainable and society by preventing grid congestion and accelerating the energy transition.

Such measures require organised cooperation between businesses. Unfortunately, only 20% of regular business parks have some form of organisation. Business owners face more obstacles, such as the need for substantial investment and in many cases a lack of clarity regarding what the government expects from them now and in the future. Support from the municipality is often limited due to lack of expertise and capacity. In short, the government needs to offer more and better support to business owners.

The Rli makes three recommendations to accelerate efforts to improve the sustainability of business parks.

Formulate a future vision

Outline a future vision of sustainable business parks, linked to measurable interim goals with a clear timeline. Develop a sustainability label for business parks. This will make life easier for business owners by clarifying complex laws and regulations.

Make forming an organisation attractive and ultimately mandatory

Encourage organised cooperation through tax advantages, subsidies for collective sustainability projects and funding for joint hiring of a park manager. Eventually make it a legal requirement for business owners at a business park to join an Owners and Users Association.

Ensure a clear division of roles

Let the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy set the national frameworks on behalf of central government. Give the provinces a central role and let them take regional control. Municipalities, as the competent authority, are the designated first point of contact for business parks. Turn Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) into centres of expertise for improving the sustainability of business parks.

Publication date

The advisory report was presented to the Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, Micky Adriaansens, on 31 October 2023. The advisory report was also presented to the Minister for Climate and Energy Policy, Rob Jetten, and the Minister for Housing and Spatial Planning, Hugo de Jonge.

Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, Micky Adriaansens takes receipt of the advisory report

On October 31 2023, Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, Micky Adriaansens took receipt of the advisory report “Working together: Opting for future-proof business parks”. From left to right: Evert Nieuwenhuis (Rli project leader), Minister Micky Adriaansens (EACP), Jan Jaap de Graeff (Rli chair), Erik Verhoef (Rli Council member and committee chair) and Yourai Mol (Rli Council member). Photo: Fred Ernst.

Meeting on Thursday 7 December 2023, 2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

The Rli organised a meeting on its advisory report on the afternoon of Thursday 7 December in The Hague. This meeting was in Dutch.
Further information on the programme and speakers is in Dutch on the Rli-website.

More information

For more information about the advisory report or to give your reaction to it, please contact the project leader Evert Nieuwenhuis at evert.nieuwenhuis@rli.nl, or on +31 (0)6 2192 6501

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Good Water, Good Policy

11 May 2023
Teasertekst
The Netherlands is required to meet the WFD standards by 2027. What government policy is needed to achieve the WFD objectives as quickly as possible and then consolidate the objectives achieved?
Advies bestand
Adviesnummer
Rli 2023/02

Background to and focus of the advisory letter

Plentiful supply of good-quality water is vital for health, nature, drinking water production, industry and agriculture. In force since 2000, the European Water Framework Directive (WFD) requires all waters in Europe to meet its standards by 2027. Much has been done since then, but the framework’s objectives are still far from being achieved. Only a small percentage of Dutch waters are considered "good" status. In 2019, for example, 75% of surface waters exceeded standards for one or more pollutants. And in 2020, the biological quality of 90% of surface waters was still not good enough, mainly due to excessive loads of nitrogen and phosphate from fertilisers. Failure to achieve WFD objectives in a timely manner could mean that numerous activities in the Netherlands – both in agriculture and in the rest of the economy – are forced to come to a halt. There is also a risk that if the Netherlands fails to meet the WFD objectives, it could face fines from the European Union.

Against this background, in this advisory letter the Rli focuses on answering the question: what government policy is needed to achieve the WFD objectives as quickly as possible and then consolidate the objectives achieved?

Children playing in and around the water, with newly built houses in the background

Explanatory Note

In this advisory report, the Rli concludes that with the current Dutch policy, the WFD objectives cannot reasonably be met by 2027. Moreover, the implementation of that policy is being hampered by a number of factors, to such an extent that the WFD objectives are unlikely to be achievable beyond 2027 without the policy approach being tightened up. The Rli makes five recommendations that are expected to allow the WFD objectives to still be achieved, albeit later than 2027.

1. Improve the way the WFD follows through into all relevant policy areas and take mandatory measures to this end

The government must ensure that the WFD objectives and associated standards explicitly and bindingly follow through into legislation, regulations and decision-making in all policy areas that contribute to the WFD objectives being met. For example, general rules on fertilisers, plant protection products and the discharge of hazardous substances should be tightened up. The Rli recommends applying the Dutch Water Assessment [in Dutch: watertoets] (a formal advisory instrument to facilitate the integration of spatial planning and water management) more strictly for all spatial plans and decisions that affect or are likely to affect the water system. Spatial plans and decisions must be adapted if the Water Assessment shows that they bring about a detoriation in the current state of the water system. 

2. Make all groundwater and surface water abstractions subject to licensing or notification and reserve sufficient physical space for drinking water production

The Rli recommends making all groundwater and surface water abstractions subject to licensing in areas at risk of water shortage, specifically highlighting the importance of protecting groundwater and surface water intended for drinking water production. This water resource must meet the requirements to be imposed on it in terms of both quantity and quality. It is important to consider how the growing demand for drinking water can be met in future, so that it can be taken into account in spatial planning.

3. Reduce nutrient concentrations in groundwater and surface water by tightening up manure regulations, deploy instruments for the government's intended reduction of livestock numbers and improve purification in sewage treatment plants

The Rli recommends ensuring that manure policy is in line with WFD objectives. To reduce nutrient concentrations in water, the Rli recommends gradually scaling down the number of phosphate and livestock rights being traded, buying up these rights for a reasonable fee and taking them out of circulation. The Rli also recommends requiring water boards that still allow discharges of too many nutrients such as phosphate and nitrate to surface water to add a fourth treatment stage in sewage treatment plants by 2027 at the latest.

4. Ensure that the WFD objectives follow through into legislation on plant protection products, priority substances, emerging substances, drug residues, etc.

The Rli recommends ensuring WFD objectives follow through into plant protection policy and amending laws and regulations governing products in which priority and emerging (only recently found in water) substances are used. The WFD objectives will have to be incorporated into these laws and regulations.

5. Start assessing the effects of all measures immediately

It is important to quickly clarify what the remainder of the WFD challenge consists of. The Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management should therefore arrange for the expected effects of all current and proposed measures to be assessed. Additional measures should be taken where necessary.

Publication date

The advisory report was presented to the Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management on 11 May 2023.

On 11 May 2023, Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management Mark Harbers took receipt of the advisory letter “Good Water, Good Policy”. L to R: Karin Sluis (Rli Council member and committee chair), Jan Jaap de Graeff (Rli chair), Mark Harbers and Niels Koeman (Rli Council member). Photo: Fred Ernst

Information or comments

For further information on the advisory report, please contact project leader Nicole van Buren at nicole.van.buren@rli.nl or +31 (0)6-10172005.

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Every region counts!

Subtitel
A new approach to regional disparities
27 March 2023
Teasertekst
There are significant differences between the regions of the Netherlands. Differences in landscape and regional culture, for example, give the Netherlands its character, but many other regional disparities are undesirable and major changes in government policy will be needed to counter them.
Advies bestand
Adviesnummer
2023/01

Background and request for advice

Although the Netherlands is a relatively small country, it has significant regional disparities. There are differences between regions in terms of the landscape and culture, but also when it comes to people’s chances of finding suitable jobs, getting an education in an easily accessible location and growing old in good health. Certain parts of the Netherlands, mostly in ‘peripheral’ regions outside the country’s economic centres, face an accumulation of deficits in several areas. Deficits include the level of average income, the quality of the environment, the availability of public facilities, such as education, healthcare and public transport, and the employment situation. In certain regions there are also few cultural facilities and meeting places available and maintaining active clubs and associations there is no easy task.

This advisory report considers the nature and extent of regional disparities and deficits and aims to contribute to a new approach to tackling regional disparities in wellbeing, thereby strengthening the Netherlands as a whole. Three advisory councils have come together to draw up this report: the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Rli), the Council of Public Health & Society (RVS) and the Council for Public Administration (ROB). They considered the following question:

What is needed to prevent or reduce undesirable disparities between regions and thereby promote wellbeing in all regions of the Netherlands? And what role should central government and other entities play in this?

Illustration by Jenneke Drupsteen Grafische vormgeving, The Hague, The Netherlands

Explanation

In recent years disparities in wellbeing between the regions of our country have widened and government policies have contributed to this. Outside the Netherlands’ economic centres, more and more facilities are in decline and disappearing, including those related to accessibility, healthcare, education and culture. This is leading to socio-economic deficits and also health inequalities. During our research we also saw and heard, of course, that many people appreciate and cherish life in the regions outside our economic centres for a variety of reasons: the space, the social cohesion, the landscape or the peace and quiet these places offer. Nevertheless, we encountered too many undesirable deficits in terms of wellbeing – undesirable because they undermine the vitality and quality of life of communities in the regions and lead to adverse impacts for the Netherlands as a whole. We noted that national policy currently focuses on economic centres and that the government tends to look at the efficiency of investments and (semi-)public facilities from a ‘macro perspective’, without considering the specific, regional context. Issues that are urgent and of great importance in the regions outside economic centres, such as public transport links and maintaining the level of education and healthcare provision, are of only limited significance when efficiency is considered from a national ‘macro perspective’, as these regions are more sparsely populated and make a smaller contribution to national economic growth.

All in all, national policy does not currently focus on ensuring a basic level of wellbeing throughout the country. The limited attention paid to regions outside economic centres is additionally problematic when you consider that the Netherlands is confronted with a number of major, national social challenges, such as climate adaptation and the necessary energy, agricultural and economic transitions. These can only be addressed successfully if the entire country can contribute to this process and benefit from the outcome. This calls for resilient, vibrant regions and a good relationship between central government and the regions. Moreover, the growth of economically strong regions is reaching the limits of what is possible without affecting quality of life, with a resulting risk of new problems arising in areas including housing, the quality of the environment and health. We therefore believe that a new perspective is needed within national policy: one in which regional opportunities are valued and in which the people who live and work in the regions are taken fully into account.

To counter the undesirable disparities in wellbeing in the Netherlands, the councils are making the following recommendations:

  • Rethink central government’s conventional policy and investment logic by focusing national policy on wellbeing in all regions and allowing budgets to be pooled.
  • Invest in substantial, long-term regional development programmes by encouraging regions to develop opportunity agendas to promote greater wellbeing and by making long-term investment budgets available as central government.
  • Work to develop a strong relationship between regions and central government by aiming to achieve a modern decentralisation policy and ensuring the regions are represented at central government level and central government is represented in the regions.

Publication date and meeting

The advisory report was presented to the Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, Hanke Bruins Slot, on 27 March 2023. During a public meeting in Veenhuizen, council chairs Jan Jaap de Graeff (Rli), Han Polman (ROB) and Jet Bussemaker (RVS) jointly handed over the report to the minister.

From left to right: council chairs Han Polman (ROB) and Jet Bussemaker (RVS), Minister Hanke Bruins Slot and council chair Jan Jaap de Graeff (Rli). Photo: Karel Hulskers.

More information

For more information about the advisory report or to give your reaction to it, please contact the project leader Bart Swanenvleugel at bart.swanenvleugel@rli.nl, or on +31 (0)6 5201 2691.

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Work programme 2023-2024

In the coming years, the Council’s aim is to help accelerate the necessary transitions in the wider domain of the physical human environment. Because the associated challenges are closely intertwined, most of the Council’s advisory reports will transcend the boundaries of the four ministries responsible for the physical domain. 

Themes work programme 2023-2024

Three subjects from the 2022-2023 work programme will continue into 2023:

  • Policy for business parks
  • ‘Forgotten’ Netherlands?
  • Framework Directive on Water

The council proposes five new themes for its 2023-2024 programming. These themes are briefly explained in this letter:

  1. From throw-away economy to sustainable products
  2. Long-term spatial consequences of climate adaptation
  3. The juridification of the social debate on sustainability and the environment
  4. Sustainable construction
  5. Overall well-being in environmental policy practice

The 2022-2023 work programme also included a proposal for an advisory report entitled “Green recovery – Green Deal” [Groen uit de crisis – Green Deal]. This was prompted by a request from the Dutch government in March 2021 for the Council to assist it in considering what is needed for a green economic recovery following the Covid crisis. Since then, however, the Dutch economy has recovered at lightning speed and is now plagued by very different problems, such as scarcity in the labour market, high inflation, energy scarcity and declining purchasing power. The Council will therefore refrain from issuing an advisory report on recovery policy. In its place, the Council intends to prepare an unsolicited advisory report entitled “implementation capacity”.

In addition to the above-mentioned topics, in the coming years the Council will supplement its regular work with advice based on interim and final outcomes of the evaluation of the Environment and Planning Act.

Finally, it is worth mentioning that the Council is considering issuing unsolicited advice on the complex issues in the living environment that are to be resolved in the next governmental term.

See for up dates of the topics 'In preparation'

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illustration of cogwheels that interlock with drawings of agriculture, infrastructure, housing, consultation, transport, energy
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Homepage Teasertekst
The work programme 2023-2024 summarises the advisory topics, the latest status, and the schedule going forward.

Finance in transition

Subtitel
Towards an active role for the financial sector in a sustainable economy
22 december 2022
Teasertekst
The financial sector will have an important role to play in the transition to a sustainable economy. This will not happen by itself, however. Government direction is needed to ensure the financial sector actually prepares for and contributes more quickly to the transition.

Background and request for advice

The climate and biodiversity crisis is presenting the Dutch economy with a major challenge in the area of sustainability. New economic activities will have to be developed, while many existing activities will need to be phased out or converted. This will require significant investment. The challenge of becoming more sustainable will also involve risks that financial institutions and regulators must prepare for. The financial sector therefore has an active role to play in the transition to a sustainable economy.

The central question addressed in the advisory report ‘Finance in transition: Towards an active role for the financial sector in a sustainable economy’ is:

‘What options does the government have to steer financial institutions in such a way that they anticipate a sustainable economy and contribute to the transition towards it?’.

illustration of a one euro rolling through the grass

Explanation

At present, there is far too little sustainable investment in the Netherlands. Although a great deal of money was available on the financial markets over the past decade, very little of it found its way into sustainable economic activities. The supply of (high-)risk capital for innovations and the supply of long-term finance were inadequate. Given the current macroeconomic environment, this situation is at risk of deteriorating further. There is a mismatch between the supply of and demand for sustainable finance and the Rli fears this gap is widening.

Furthermore, banks, pension funds, insurers and asset managers will need to redirect their financial flows to ensure they themselves get through the transition with as little damage as possible. It is important to escape the downward spiral and phase out funding for non-sustainable activities, while increasing financial flows channelled towards sustainable activities, such as circular business, renewable energy infrastructure and sustainable agriculture.

Measures such as the pricing or banning of negative sustainability impacts are important, but are not sufficient on their own to allow the financial sector to fulfil its role in the transition to a sustainable economy. In its advisory report the Rli therefore recommends that the government take targeted measures.

Although the financial sector has undertaken some initial steps in recent years, we can still see four barriers to progress within the sector:

  • The vast majority of parties remain focused on short-term returns.
  • Rules and supervision are not sufficiently geared towards sustainability.
  • Government bonds are overrepresented in pension fund portfolios, which means opportunities to invest in the transition to a sustainable economy are being passed up.
  • Government funding and support for sustainable projects are fragmented.

The Rli considers it unlikely that the financial sector will be able to take the necessary steps independently. It believes that additional government policies will be needed to achieve these steps: not only stimulating and facilitating policies, but also policies that force the sector to act. In other words, a carrot-and-stick approach. Broadly speaking, the Council’s advice is therefore as follows:

  • Embed sustainable development in the business model of financial institutions. Make sure banks adjust their calculation models for assessing investment proposals to avoid impeding the transition to a sustainable economy and broaden the scope of reporting on sustainability policies so that this covers more than just CO2 emissions. Ensure, for example, that the impact of economic activities on biodiversity and resource consumption is also reported on.
  • Give sustainability greater prominence in financial sector rules and supervision. Ensure that De Nederlandsche Bank and the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets also monitor the sustainability impact of finance and link the amount of tax that banks pay to their sustainability performance.
  • Encourage sustainable investments within the new pension system. The overhaul of the pension system can be used as an opportunity to ensure that pension funds can invest more in the Netherlands’ sustainable economy, while maintaining the expected return on their investments.
  • Create a fully-fledged national investment institution. Combine and strengthen existing institutions and instruments. Invest-NL and parts of the National Growth Fund and Climate Fund could form the basis for a new investment institution in which the government and business community could work together to significantly increase sustainable investment.

Date of publication and public meeting

The advisory report was handed over to the Minister of Finance, Sigrid Kaag, on 22 December 2022. A public meeting to discuss the report will follow on 14 February 2023.

More information

For more information about the advisory report or the meeting, please contact the project leader, Joris Stok: joris.stok@rli.nl, tel. +31 (0)6 1324 6502.

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Adviestype
Raad

Towards a sustainable food system

Subtitel
a position paper on the framework law
31 october 2022
Teasertekst
In 2022, the European Commission announced a framework law aimed at supporting the transition to a sustainable food system.
Adviesnummer
Rli/EEAC

In response to the European Commission’s proposal, the Dutch Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Rli), together with several fellow European councils, issued a position paper on 31 October 2022 on several key aspects of this forthcoming framework law.
 

Background and request for advice

In May 2020, the European Commission presented its ‘farm to fork’ strategy. In this strategy, the Commission announced special legislation: a framework law for sustainable food systems. This framework law should contribute to increased coherence in the food system, from food production to consumption, as well as the socio-economic and environmental outcomes of all these activities at both European and national levels.

The European Commission started preparing the framework law in 2022. This prompted a group of advisory councils, with Rli council member Krijn Poppe as rapporteur, to draw up a position paper addressed to the European Commission and EU member states, in the context of the European Environment and Sustainable Development Advisory Councils Network (EEAC Network), on some key aspects of the upcoming framework law.

Cover Towards a sustainable food system: a position paper on the framework law

Notes
 

European society and its food system face a triple challenge: 1) ensuring a healthy diet for all; 2) mitigating and adapting to climate change; and 3) protecting and restoring habitats for their biodiversity and ecosystem services. Effectively addressing this triple challenge in the complex context of the European food system requires a systems approach. The framework law that has been announced is necessary for this purpose. In their position paper, the councils consider five key aspects of this upcoming framework law:

1. General principles

The councils argue that the general principles of the law should help ensure that the strong innovative capacity of actors in the food chain is no longer used to achieve ever lower food prices. Instead, their innovative capacity should be harnessed to accelerate the transition to sustainable agriculture, food processing and food consumption.

In addition, the advisory councils advocate that the framework law contributes to an equitable transition to a sustainable food system. If necessary, cost increases for consumers should be offset by income tax measures, the minimum wage or social security, for example. Falling incomes on the producer side should be met, if necessary, by direct income support and payments for public services. This calls for consistency between EU policies for sustainable food systems in the single market and social and fiscal policies in the member states.

2. Certification and labelling

Certification and labelling are important tools that the framework law can use. Certification should allow classification of farms and food as more or less sustainable. This supports benchmarking and price differentiation, for example, enabling sustainable action in the chain to be rewarded through actions such as public contracts, support in the land market and/or the allocation of advisory capacity. Implementing a certification system should and can be done quickly. Further digitalisation in the food chain can boost certification while reducing administrative burdens. Labelling can then help in further developing a market for sustainable products and strengthening the information position of actors throughout the food system. 

3. Policy instruments to encourage actors in the food system

The framework law should target all actors in the food system and the position paper develops recommendations for the various actors. These recommendations assume a system of certification and labelling. For example, food processing companies and retailers could be asked to include the sustainability aspects of their procurement in their ESG reporting, and the government could use certification and labelling to implement procurement policies that encourage demand for sustainably produced food.

The councils recommend using other instruments besides certification and labelling to encourage actors in the food system to help make the system sustainable. VAT regulations could be changed, for instance, so that animal products are taxed more heavily than, say, products with a lower carbon footprint and/or health benefits, such as fruit and vegetables. Furthermore, the councils recommend not exempting the food system (including agriculture) from instruments such as an economy-wide carbon tax.

4. Monitoring food system policy

The Framework Law should ensure that monitoring is based on data describing the sustainability of the entire system, including the behaviour and sustainability performance of different categories of actors in the value chain. Proper monitoring should help underpin the food system policy debate with facts, according to the advisory councils.

It is also important to measure all sustainability indicators in an integrated way, and to collect them using a methodologically sound approach that can be audited. Such an approach should provide insights that can be used to see the effects of policy measures on farms, including unforeseen trade-offs. 

5. Governance

To effectively manage the European food system, and properly coordinate current policy, the councils recommend setting up a coordination group that includes European Commissioners whose DGs are involved in food systems in a broad sense. In addition, a coordination mechanism should be established between the European Commission and national ministries to coordinate actions and measures. This mechanism should work across all policy areas (such as agriculture, fisheries, environment, competition, and health and social policy). Member states should also develop comprehensive national strategic plans for sustainable food systems, including social measures for an equitable transition.

Publication date and online public meeting

The position paper was issued on 31 October 2022 and presented and explained to European Commission Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans in December 2022 by a number of EEAC network delegates, including Rli Council member Krijn Poppe. In addition, the EEAC Network, in cooperation with the Permanent Representation of the Netherlands to the EU, organised a meeting in Brussels on 2 February 2023. The position paper’s findings were discussed with national and international invitees.

Various councils also brought the paper to the attention at national level. In the Netherlands, Rli Chair Jan Jaap de Graeff and Council member Krijn Poppe presented the position paper in the executive committee of the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality. 

Presentment to Timmermans

Pictured from left to right are Krijn Poppe (Rli Council member and author of the position paper), Frans Timmermans (Executive Vice-President of the European Commission for the Green Deal), Arnau Queralt Bassa (Chair of the EEAC Network), Jan Verheeke (Chair of the Working Group on Ecosystem Services, EEAC Network). 

Information or response

If you wish to respond or would like more information, please contact Folmer de Haan, project manager,f.w.dehaan@rli.nl, +31 (0)6 4615 2496

sitecontent
Adviestype
Raad

Splitting the atom, splitting opinion?

Subtitel
Decision-making on nuclear energy based on values
7 september 2022
Teasertekst
The energy transition calls for diligent decision-making on the role of nuclear energy. Over the coming years, this issue will be the subject of public and political debate. What aspects should be considered as part of this process?
Adviesnummer
2022/04

Background and request for advice

Over the coming years, the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Rli) is anticipating a political and public debate on the organisation of our future energy system and the possible role of nuclear energy within it. Decisions in this area will need to be taken diligently and be future-proof to avoid putting the 2050 climate targets at risk.

The advisory report does not address the question of whether new nuclear power stations should or should not be built, but instead focuses on how best to conduct the public debate on this topic.

The main question addressed in the report is: What considerations must be made when deciding on a possible role for new nuclear power stations within the carbon-neutral energy system that the Netherlands will have to realise in the near future? And what recommendations can be made based on this for the reflection process and the exchange of views that the government and parliament must undertake before decisions are made?

Explanatory notes

The coalition agreement of the fourth Rutte government includes an agreement to support the construction of two new nuclear power stations. Within Dutch society, opinions are very much split on the use of nuclear energy within our future energy system. However, the Rli has also noted that five values are considered important within the context of the debate and the decision-making process: energy supply certainty, affordability, safety and security, sustainability and justice. At the moment, these values are not being sufficiently considered in the discussion about our energy system and the possible use of nuclear energy within it. To allow choices to be made within and between these values, a technical assessment is needed and ethical issues have to be considered. Consequently, there should be greater scope for ethical reflection during the debate and the decision-making process.

Taking the five values as a basis, the advisory report provides an overview of relevant knowledge that is needed to make considerations, drawing on factual information available in the literature. Before this in-depth examination of the subject matter, the report also illustrates what Dutch people think about the future role of nuclear energy and what arguments they use.

To allow the debate to be conducted effectively, the Rli recommends as follows:

  • Policy choices on the role of nuclear energy should not be taken in isolation, but should be incorporated into the choices relating to the energy system as a whole.
  • Before such choices are made, factual knowledge must be enhanced in relation to four specific points and the debate should then be focused on seven policy questions.
  • There should be clarity about the technical and ethical trade-offs that the government and parliament have made when interpreting the five values.
  • Citizens should be involved explicitly in the debate on this subject, in a manner that goes beyond the public participation procedures required by law. In principle, the Rli considers a citizens’ assembly to be a suitable form of civic participation when it comes to making choices about our country’s future energy system and the possible role of nuclear energy within it. The Council therefore supports the proposal made by Minister Jetten to look into the role that a citizens’ assembly could play.

Date of publication and public meeting

The advisory report was handed over to the Minister for Climate and Energy Policy, Rob Jetten, on 7 September 2022. During the meeting various panel members expressed their views on the advisory report’s key message and the main issues requiring further debate.

More information

For more information about the advisory report or the meeting, please contact Bas Waterhout, project manager, bas.waterhout@rli.nl, tel: +31 (0)6 21178802

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Raad