Court of Audit Dutch-language web page on spatial planning now contains up-to-date information on money flows and Dutch government policy on spatial planning: ‘follow the money’
The Netherlands Court of Audit is monitoring central government policy on and investments in national spatial planning.
This information is available at www.rekenkamer.nl/ruimtelijkeinrichting The Dutch-language web page outlines government investments in spatial planning in the Netherlands, lists the policy tools used by the government and shows how the money is spent. Since the web page was first launched in mid-2011, the contents have been updated annually, on the basis of the figures in the financial statements published by the ministries. The latest update was completed on 26 June of this year. In addition to the latest figures on central government investments in spatial planning in 2012, the web page now also includes information on money flows in previous years, thus enabling users to form a picture of the long-term situation and to see how money flows have been affected by changes in policy and the process of decentralisation.
The web page illustrates the changing role of central government in relation to spatial planning. The scale of direct central government investment in spatial planning is changing in line with the changes in the status of central government in relation to other tiers of government. The past three years have seen a decline in the volume of government investment, the bulk of which is channelled through the Multiannual Programme for Infrastructure, Space and Transport (MIRT):
Annual central government investment in the MIRT:
2010 €5.1 billion
2011 €4.5 billion
2012 €3.9 billion
The web page also contains an interactive map showing the current state of the projects in the MIRT’s ‘area agendas’. The following information is provided on each project:
- the current state of the project;
- The amount of money set aside by central government for completing the project;
- central government spending on the project in 2012;
- how much of the project budget has already been spent.
The figures show the progress made by the projects and the amount of resources still available for spending on them. The next update is planned for the first half of 2014.