OECD territorial reviews : Netherlands.

320 Pages·2014·10.887 MB·English

by  OECD

OECD Territorial Reviews
NEThERlaNDs
This series offers analysis and policy guidance to national and sub-national governments seeking to strengthen
territorial development policies and governance. These reviews are part of a larger body of OECD work
OECD Territorial Reviews
on regional development that addresses the territorial dimension of a range of policy challenges, including
governance, innovation, urban development and rural policy. This work includes both thematic reports and
reports on specific countries or regions.
NEThERlaNDs
Contents
Executive summary
Assessment and recommendations
Chapter 1. Regional development trends in the Netherlands
Chapter 2. Exploiting policy complementarities for regional development in the Netherlands
Chapter 3. Multi-level governance challenges in the Netherlands
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Consult this publication on line at http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264209527-en.
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isbN 978-92-64-20951-0
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04 2014 02 1 P

OECD Territorial Reviews:
Netherlands
2014
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3
FOREWORD –

Foreword
Policies for growth, jobs, equity and environmental sustainability have greater impact
when they recognise the different economic and social realities where people live and
work. National governments are thus challenged to rethink how to harness the potential of
different types of cities and regions to prepare for the future. Policies for regions and
cities can generate opportunities for skills development, investment and innovation, and
directly contribute to improving quality of life. Such policies actively complement
traditional macro and structural approaches in enhancing national performance.
OECD Ministers endorsed this policy framework on 5-6 December 2013, during the
meeting “Regions and Cities: Where Policy and People Meet” in Marseille. In particular,
they endorsed the design of a national urban policy framework to address the economic,
social and environmental needs and opportunities in cities of all sizes and the need to
develop new data, policy and governance tools that enable governments to better fit
policies to places, thereby promoting policy action at the relevant scale, including for key
sectors, such as innovation, water and transport.
Under this context the OECD National Territorial Reviews: Netherlands for the first
time examined sub-national trends and performance with a new analytical tool, the
functional urban areas (FUA) in addition to assessing sub-national policies and
governance challenges. The case of the Netherlands is unique in the OECD given that
there is no explicit and comprehensive regional policy framework at the national level
and no explicit national urban policy framework. In contrast there is a national
infrastructure policy and a newly created Top-Sector Innovation Policy at the national
level. These sector polices indeed have an impact on regional development in addition to
European Policies and polices undertaken by subnational governments. OECD Territorial
Reviews: Netherlands is therefore an interesting experiment and case for discussion
among OECD member countries.
This review was undertaken under the auspices of the Territorial Development Policy
Committee (TDPC), created in 1999 as a unique forum for international exchange and
debate. The TDPC has developed a number of activities, including a series of national
Territorial Reviews. These studies follow a standard methodology and common
conceptual framework, allowing countries to share their experiences and disseminate
information on good practices.

Rolf Alter
Director, Public Governance and Territorial
Development Directorate, OECD
OECD TERRITORIAL REVIEWS: NETHERLANDS © OECD 2014
4
– ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Acknowledgements
The OECD would like to thank the Dutch authorities at the national and sub-national
level for their co-operation and support during the review process. Special thanks are
given to Mr. Rick Roelofs and Ms. Atti Bruins from the Ministry of Economic Affairs for
the overall co-ordination of the project. In addition the OECD would like to thank
Ms. Ellen Driessen and Ms. Katinka Regtien from the Ministry of Infrastructure and the
Environment and Ms. Lenneke Joosen and Mr. Edo Kort from the Ministry of the Interior
and Kingdom Relations for their valuable contributions as members of the local team.
The Secretariat is also thankful to Ms. Carla Boonstra from the Dutch Permanent
Delegation to the OECD for valuable inputs and help liaising with Dutch authorities.
The Secretariat is also grateful to Sweden and Switzerland for the involvement of
their peer reviewers, Mr. Patrik Johansson, Ministry of Enterprise, Energy and
Communication of Sweden, and Ms. Annette Spoerri, Federal Department of Economic
Affairs, Education and Research of Switzerland.
OECD Territorial Reviews: Netherlands belongs to a series of OECD Territorial
Reviews produced by the OECD Public Governance and Territorial Development
Directorate (GOV) and its Regional Development Policy Division, led by Mr. Joaquim
Oliveira Martins. This report was drafted by a team composed of Mr. David Bartolini,
Ms. Isabelle Chatry and Mr. Daniel Sanchez Serra, under the supervision of
Mr. Enrique Garcilazo. The report benefited from valuable insights and inputs by Mr.
Rudiger Ahrend, Ms. Catherine Gamper, Ms. Soo-Jin Kim, Mr. Alexander Lembcke, Ms.
Karen Maguire, Mr. Olaf Merk, Mr. Abel Schumann, Mr. William Tompson, and from
comments and inputs by Rolf Alter, Director of the OECD Public Governance and
Territorial Development Directorate.
The report draws on key contributions from Mr. Paul Benneworth and
Mr. Marcin Dabrowski. Ms Kate Lancaster, Ms Katherine Kraig-Ernandes,
Ms Fiona Hinchcliffe and Ms. Sally Hinchcliffe provided editorial support.
Ms Jennifer Allain, Ms. Gemma Nellies and Ms. Erin Byrne prepared the manuscript for
publication.
OECD TERRITORIAL REVIEWS: NETHERLANDS © OECD 2014
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TABLE OF CONTENTS –

Table of contents
Acronyms and abbreviations ................................................................................................................. 11
Executive summary ................................................................................................................................. 15
Assessment and Recommendations ....................................................................................................... 17
Chapter 1 Regional development trends in the Netherlands .............................................................. 29
The Netherlands’ macroeconomic performance ................................................................................... 30
Administrative areas and regions .......................................................................................................... 42
How are the Netherlands’ regions and functional urban areas performing? ......................................... 63
What are the drivers of regional growth in the Netherlands? ................................................................ 76
Notes ................................................................................................................................................... 107
Annex 1.A1 OECD regional classification and typology ..................................................................... 108
Annex 1.A2 Defining OECD functional urban areas ........................................................................... 109
Annex 1.A3 Methodology for decomposing the factors of growth ...................................................... 111
Annex 1.A4 Methodology for geographic concentration and regional inequality indexes .................. 115
Bibliography ........................................................................................................................................ 116
Chapter 2 Exploiting policy complementarities for regional development in the Netherlands ........... 119
Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 120
Dutch spatial planning and infrastructure policy ............................................................................. 126
Innovation policy in the Netherlands .................................................................................................. 134
The role of the European Union in regional development ..................................................................... 156
Cross-border policy ............................................................................................................................. 164
National urban and rural policy section .............................................................................................. 167
Towards a smart policy mix for Dutch regional economic development............................................ 179
Notes ................................................................................................................................................... 191
Bibliography ........................................................................................................................................ 193
Chapter 3 Multi-level governance challenges in the Netherlands ................................................... 199
How is governance organised in the Netherlands? .............................................................................. 200
On-going decentralisation reform in the Netherlands ......................................................................... 229
Ongoing territorial reform in the Netherlands: The re-scaling challenge ........................................... 258
Possible gaps and key challenges for the Dutch subnational government reform .............................. 285
Notes ................................................................................................................................................... 307
Bibliography ........................................................................................................................................ 308

OECD TERRITORIAL REVIEWS: NETHERLANDS © OECD 2014
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– TABLE OF CONTENTS

Tables
Table 1.1. Unemployment rate by education attainment of adults of working age (25-64) .......... 40
Table 1.2. Surface area, population and GDP among TL3 OECD regions, 2009 ......................... 44
Table 1.3. OECD population living in functional urban areas, 2012 ............................................ 47
Table 1.4. Functional urban areas in the Netherlands, 2012 .......................................................... 49
Table 1.5. Functional urban areas and TL3 regions (provinces) in the Netherlands ..................... 52
Table 1.6. Growth rates in GDP per capita and GDP per worker in Dutch TL3 regions, 1995-2007 .... 65
Table 1.7. The variable effects of the crisis on the Dutch TL3 regions, 2007-10 ......................... 67
Table 1.8. Effects of the crisis on GDP per capita, Dutch TL3 regions, 2007-10 ......................... 69
Table 1.9. Effects of the crisis on regional unemployment, 2007-10 ............................................ 72
Table 1.10. The economic premium in the Netherlands and OECD-wide ...................................... 80
Table 1.11. Labour productivity in five Dutch functional urban areas, 2010 .................................. 82
Table 1.12. Labour productivity growth in five Dutch FUAs, 2000-10 .......................................... 82
Table 1.13. Sectoral specialisation in terms of value added, 2007 .................................................. 89
Table 1.14. Regional distribution of motorways, municipal and provincial roads .......................... 98
Table 1.A2.1. Functional urban areas in the Netherlands and population size .................................. 110
Table 1.A3.1. Decomposing GDP per capita in Dutch provinces, 1995-2009 .................................. 114
Table 2.1. The evolution of territorial development policy in the post-war period ..................... 124
Table 2.2. Evolution of regional policy in the Netherlands in the post-war period ..................... 125
Table 2.3. Regional emphases for strategic infrastructure development ..................................... 131
Table 2.4. Criteria for selecting infrastructural projects with national funding (MIRT) ............. 132
Table 2.5 The budget allocations for Peaks in the Delta, 2006-10 ............................................. 136
Table 2.6. Territorial implications of the Peaks in the Delta policy ............................................ 136
Table 2.7. Innovative businesses in the Netherlands, 1994-2008 ................................................ 137
Table 2.8. The key indicators for the top sectors ......................................................................... 139
Table 2.9. Available resources for the Top Sector policy, 2011 vision ....................................... 145
Table 2.10. Multi-annual oversight of innovation and research budgets, 2008-16 ........................ 146
Table 2.11. State of the Top Sectors, 2010 .................................................................................... 152
Table 2.12. European Community funding for operational programmes in the Netherlands, 2007-13..... 157
Table 2.13. Old and modern regional policy: Where does the Netherlands stand? ...................... 182
Table 2.14. Areas for potential complementarities in six policy areas for the Netherlands .......... 185
Table 3.1. Division of tasks between the municipalities and provinces ...................................... 209
Table 3.2. The city regions in 2010 ............................................................................................. 254
Table 3.3. The provinces in the Netherlands in 2013 .................................................................. 259
Table 3.4. Dutch provinces compared to OECD intermediate levels of government, 2010 ........ 261
Table 3.5. Public administration reform challenges and possible policy tools ............................ 285

Figures
Figure 1.1. The OECD Better Life Index, 2013 .............................................................................. 30
Figure 1.2. GDP per capita in constant 2005 USD, 2012 ................................................................ 32
Figure 1.3. Labour productivity ...................................................................................................... 32
Figure 1.4. Dynamics of the employment rate ................................................................................ 33
Figure 1.5. PISA scores and education attainment of the labour force in the Netherlands ............. 34
Figure 1.6. Comparison with other countries, PISA science scale, 2009 ........................................ 34
Figure 1.7. Skills PIAAC survey, 2012 ........................................................................................... 35
Figure 1.8. Employment by education attainment, 2011 ................................................................. 35
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TABLE OF CONTENTS –

Figure 1.9. Return of investment in R&D ....................................................................................... 36
Figure 1.10. Structural composition of BERD, 2010 ........................................................................ 37
Figure 1.11. Export of goods and services as share of GDP ............................................................. 37
Figure 1.12. Export sector composition, 2000-10 ............................................................................. 38
Figure 1.13. GDP per capita growth in OECD countries, 2011-12 ................................................... 39
Figure 1.14. Evolution of the Dutch unemployment rate .................................................................. 40
Figure 1.15. Main government indicators ......................................................................................... 41
Figure 1.16. Long-term population growth by age groups, 1993-2013 ............................................ 42
Figure 1.17. Population density and surface area, OECD countries, 2012 ....................................... 43
Figure 1.18. Average municipality populations and surface area in the OECD, 2012 ...................... 44
Figure 1.19. Functional urban areas in the Netherlands .................................................................... 49
Figure 1.20. Distribution of population by city size, 2012 ................................................................ 50
Figure 1.21. Location and size of functional urban areas in the Netherlands ................................... 51
Figure 1.22. Annual population growth among Dutch provinces, 1995-2010 .................................. 53
Figure 1.23. Population growth at municipal level, 2001-12 ............................................................ 53
Figure 1.24. Population growth in the Netherlands’ 35 functional urban areas ................................ 54
Figure 1.25. Population growth in the core and periphery in 35 Dutch FUAs, 2001-12 .................. 54
Figure 1.26. Urban sprawl index in Dutch metropolitan areas, 2000-06 .......................................... 55
Figure 1.27. Concentration of population and GDP in OECD countries, 2011 ................................ 56
Figure 1.28. Geographic index of population and GDP in the Netherlands, 1995-2011 .................. 57
Figure 1.29. Inequality in GDP per capita among TL3 regions in OECD countries, 2010 ............... 58
Figure 1.30. Change in inequality in GDP per capita among TL3 regions in the Netherlands
and in OECD countries, 2010 ...................................................................................... 59
Figure 1.31. How the Netherlands’ provinces drive national growth, 1995-2009 ............................ 61
Figure 1.32. Percentage of GDP contribution to national growth, 2000-10 ...................................... 62
Figure 1.33. How functional urban areas contribute to OECD GDP growth, 2000-08 ..................... 63
Figure 1.34. How GDP per capita has grown in TL3 regions, 1995-2010 ........................................ 64
Figure 1.35. Variable growth rates in richer and poorer Dutch TL3 regions, 1995-2007 ................. 64
Figure 1.36. The effects of the global crises on the Netherlands, 2000-12 ....................................... 66
Figure 1.37. Crisis and recovery amongst the Dutch TL3 regions, 2007-10 .................................... 68
Figure 1.38. How income, education, population density and urbanisation affect resilience, 2007-09 ..... 70
Figure 1.39. How income, education, population density and urbanisation affect recovery, 2009-10 ... 71
Figure 1.40. Effects of the first and second shocks on regional unemployment ............................... 73
Figure 1.41. Effects of the crises on regional unemployment rates, 2007-12 ................................... 73
Figure 1.42. How unemployment levels affect regional labour market resilience, 2008-12 ............. 74
Figure 1.43. How productivity and population density affect regional labour market resilience ..... 75
Figure 1.44. Medium and long-term unemployment rates, 2008-11 ................................................. 76
Figure 1.45. Regional productivity, population and performance, 1995-2010 ................................. 79
Figure 1.46. Benefits of economies of agglomeration in the Netherlands, 2010 .............................. 80
Figure 1.47. GDP per capita gap between the functional urban areas and the rest of the economy, 2010 . 81
Figure 1.48. Density and share of population living in Dutch functional urban areas, 2010 ............ 84
Figure 1.49. Total population and share of population living in functional urban areas among
Dutch TL3 regions, 2010 .............................................................................................. 84
Figure 1.50. Regional productivity and share of population living in functional urban areas, 2010 ....... 85
Figure 1.51. Links between population density, functional urban areas and GDP per capita
growth, 1995-2007........................................................................................................ 86
Figure 1.52. Business structure by province, 2013 ........................................................................... 89
Figure 1.53. Changes in gross value added specialisation and importance for the provincial
economy ....................................................................................................................... 91
Figure 1.54. Diversification of the provincial economies, 1999 and 2007........................................ 92
OECD TERRITORIAL REVIEWS: NETHERLANDS © OECD 2014
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Figure 1.55. Employment specialisation, 1996 and 2012 ................................................................. 93
Figure 1.56. Regional share of highly and less-educated workers to population, 2012 .................... 95
Figure 1.57. Impacts on regional resilience of a large share of less-educated workers during the
crisis .............................................................................................................................. 96
Figure 1.58. Educational attainment and labour productivity, 2010 ................................................. 96
Figure 1.59. Kilometres of road per inhabitant and per square kilometre of Dutch TL3 regions,
2013 .............................................................................................................................. 97
Figure 1.60. Road accessibility to EU markets, 2006 ....................................................................... 98
Figure 1.61. Rail accessibility to EU markets, 2006 ......................................................................... 99
Figure 1.62. Vehicles per inhabitant and population in functional urban areas, 2013 .................... 100
Figure 1.63. How functional urban areas influence service accessibility, 2013.............................. 100
Figure 1.64. The relationship between accessibility, vehicles and length of roads, 2013 ............... 101
Figure 1.65. Regional share in government and private R&D investment, 2009 ............................ 102
Figure 1.66. Research and development intensity ........................................................................... 103
Figure 1.67. Patent applications per million inhabitants, 2008 and 2010 ....................................... 103
Figure 1.68. Population trends by age group, 1990-2013 ............................................................... 104
Figure 1.69. Quality of governance indicators, 2012 ...................................................................... 105
Figure 1.70. Quality of government and level of trust .................................................................... 106
Figure 1.A2.1. Procedure for defining functional urban areas in OECD countries ............................ 109
Figure 1.A3.1. Performance of Dutch regions, employment and participation rate growth, 1995-2009 .. ..113
Figure 1.A3.2. Performance of Dutch regions and changes in activity rates, 1995-2009 ........................ ..113
Figure 2.1. Location of the core growth areas under the third National Spatial Plan ................... 127
Figure 2.2. Bottlenecks National Market and Capacity Analysis (NMCA) low economic
growth scenario 2028 .................................................................................................. 133
Figure 2.3. The spatial structure of Peaks in the Delta .................................................................. 135
Figure 2.4. Total business expenditures in research and development in the Netherlands, 2000-11 ..... 137
Figure 2.5. Public funding arrangements for TKIs ........................................................................ 144
Figure 2.6. Dutch Innovation and Research budget, 2008-16 ....................................................... 147
Figure 2.7. Share of the Top Sectors in the Dutch economic performance indicators .................. 151
Figure 2.8. Public expenditure for innovation policy (2012 prices) .............................................. 153
Figure 2.9. Evolution in granted applications for WBSO relief, 2008-12 ..................................... 153
Figure 2.10. Forces of attraction and repulsion shape flows in and out of urban areas .................. 169
Figure 2.11. Urban policy interactions ............................................................................................ 171
Figure 2.12. Share of metropolitan area population in the urban core by country, 2012 ................ 175
Figure 3.1. Organisational chart of the Dutch institutional system ............................................... 207
Figure 3.2. Number of public staff in central government, municipalities and provinces, 2003-12 ....... 211
Figure 3.3. Subnational government expenditure as a % of total public expenditure and GDP, 2012 .. 213
Figure 3.4. Breakdown of subnational government expenditure by type of actor ........................ 213
Figure 3.5. Breakdown of subnational government expenditure by economic function
(COFOG) in the EU27 and in the Netherlands, 2011 ................................................. 213
Figure 3.6. Breakdown of municipal expenditure by economic function (2012, %) .................... 214
Figure 3.7. Breakdown of provincial expenditure by economic function (2012, %) .................... 214
Figure 3.8. Subnational direct public investment as a % of total direct public investment, 2012 .... ...215
Figure 3.9. Categories of subnational government revenue, 2012 ................................................ 217
Figure 3.10. Subnational tax revenue as a % of public tax revenue, 2012 ...................................... 218
Figure 3.11. Fiscal imbalance among OECD countries at the subnational level (subnational tax
revenue as a % of subnational government revenue, 2012) ....................................... 219
Figure 3.12. Subnational government expenditure and tax revenue as a % of GDP, 2012 ............. 220
Figure 3.13. Changes in municipal levies and fees between 1995 and 2010 .................................. 221
OECD TERRITORIAL REVIEWS: NETHERLANDS © OECD 2014