In this paper the author discusses the place of rational method as a mode of operation in the procedures and actual practices of British land-use policy in recent years. In the first part she examines rational method and plan-based action in relation to other modes of operation within the context of theoretical debates about planning and public-policy procedures. This is followed by an exploration of the modes of operation evident in the procedures of British land-use policy. Then, drawing on research work on the detailed implementation of land-use policy, the author examines the way the modes of operation allowed by these procedures were used in the allocation of sites for major residential development and in the restraint of development. The author concludes with a comment on when rational method and plan-based action are likely to be adopted in British land-use policy practice.
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