Minerals Planning in The Netherlands compared to the U.K.

In May 2003, the Dutch government announced the withdrawal of the government's role in mineral planning and raw materials supply. This meant that the clock had been turned back to 1976. By now the established planning system has been run down almost completely. The Dutch raw materials policy is based on only a few statements in the government's National Spatial Plan. Meanwhile import of aggregates from our surrounding countries is growing. In this article the down-fall of the Dutch minerals planning system is examined. In this article a comparison is made with the British planning system, which is still working. England has in contrast to The Netherlands a considerably higher level of self supporting.