The Netherlands: A case of fading leadership

Introduction This chapter analyses the relationship between the development of domestic climate policy in the Netherlands and the Dutch efforts in this field in the EU and international arena since the 1980s. Traditionally, the Netherlands has enjoyed a reputation as an environmental and climate leader, based on setting ambitious goals, experimenting with new policy concepts and actively pushing others to follow suit. In this chapter we will argue that the Dutch climate leadership has largely faded. We will discuss to what extent problems in achieving domestic climate targets have affected the Netherlands’ declared ambition to act as an international leader in this particular area and identify factors that are important for understanding the current Dutch position. We will first outline the national context of Dutch climate policy, followed by an analysis of the evolution of the policy field and the most important policy instruments and actions. After that, the question of Dutch leadership is addressed before a conclusion is put forward.