Since the early 2000s, the Netherlands has gradually shifted its approach to environmental policy formulation. Moving from “command-and-control” style planning, the government is now playing a more hands-off role using incentives and innovation to change business and consumer behaviour. Further, it recognises that the transition towards a circular economy is complicated and novel, requiring a certain amount of trial and error to reach a robust policy. Moreover, the identification of realistic objectives, development of indicators and measurement of progress for resource efficiency is complex. The choice of indicators to measure progress is still the subject of debate. While policy makers generally agree on the need to reuse resources and produce more with less, agreement on the extent of the desired change is more elusive.