ABSTRACT
It is the purpose of this chapter to give a general introduction to the character of land use planning. Since this is so much a product of culture, it differs among countries. The understanding of one system is helped by comparing it with others and, for this reason, some international comparisons are introduced. The chapter presents a broad discussion of some basic features of the UK planning system, which is essentially a means for reconciling conflicting interests in land use. It is not a review of the theoretical literature on planning, though guidance on where this might be found is given in further reading at the end of the chapter.
