Along comes March 13 2018, and with Spring comes a new form of commentary by the Chancellor on the state of UK Plc. There was an obvious spring in this statement, driven by the slightly faster growth rate of the UK economy. There are perhaps two points to consider from the Spring statement. The first … Continue reading “The new Tigger-like Philip Hammond: a bounce too far?”
Category: Government
Part A: The Causes of Carillion’s Collapse
Racing to secure bids over rival construction companies, Carillion, the second-largest construction firm in the UK, hit a financial tipping point, lost the backing of the banks and collapsed. Its aggressive growth strategy and the diversification of its business portfolio increased the complexity of its internal structure. Coupled with poor oversight of its day-to-day operations, … Continue reading “Part A: The Causes of Carillion’s Collapse”
Brexit: Local and Devolved Government
This week the new report Brexit: Local and Devolved Government has been launched. The report considers not only what happened in the EU referendum itself but also the consequences of Brexit at the sub-national level. The report was launched to coincide with The UK in a Changing Europe’s conference Brexit: local and devolved government, which … Continue reading “Brexit: Local and Devolved Government”
Shaping apprenticeships to employer, economic and individual young people’s needs – does too much reform bring risks?
Apprenticeships have a long history in England. They have their roots in medieval craft guilds. Children went away to live with host families for the purpose of being taught the skills associated with a craft. The 1563 Statute of Artificers marked the first national system of apprenticeship training in England. The Statute required seven years … Continue reading “Shaping apprenticeships to employer, economic and individual young people’s needs – does too much reform bring risks?”
Snow, Snow, Glorious Snow: Funding and Financing Local Infrastructure in the UK
Snow, snow, glorious snow. The UK is currently experiencing the impacts of the ‘beast from the east’ as cold air from Russia and eastern Europe creates the conditions that produce, in many parts of the UK, transport chaos. This type of periodic weather disruption to infrastructure is a reminder of how reliant we are on … Continue reading “Snow, Snow, Glorious Snow: Funding and Financing Local Infrastructure in the UK”
Devolution: Are cities on track in the worst of times?
Regardless of the arguments for and against, the subject of devolution is here to stay. The unprecedented interest levels in the EU Referendum meant that record numbers of people voted, and at its core, this was a reflection on devolution, and who makes decisions on our behalf. So, how far has devolution come? In a … Continue reading “Devolution: Are cities on track in the worst of times?”
Birmingham Economic Review 2017: Conclusion
The Birmingham Economic Review was produced in October 2017 by City-REDI, the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce and the West Midlands Growth Company. The review highlights the current strengths and weakness of the Birmingham economy, as well as looking at the opportunities and threats that might impact upon it in the future. This is Chapter 12 of The Review, the … Continue reading “Birmingham Economic Review 2017: Conclusion”
Fiscal devolution: An era of opportunity
City-REDI has prepared this brief to inform the debate on fiscal devolution. The UK has traditionally been a fiscally centralised system with most of the local authority income coming from government transfers. The acknowledgment of the importance of place and local leadership in policies such as the industrial strategy, devo deals and the budget, together … Continue reading “Fiscal devolution: An era of opportunity”
City-REDI publications series: Professor Raquel Ortega-Argiles – The continental divide? Economic exposure to Brexit in regions and countries on both sides of the Channel
As part of a new blog series, we will be highlighting the excellent research produced by the City-REDI team since 2015, with the aim of creating an online searchable library. You can view this work by searching the blog with the relevant tag, either using the name of the author or the year of the publication. The … Continue reading “City-REDI publications series: Professor Raquel Ortega-Argiles – The continental divide? Economic exposure to Brexit in regions and countries on both sides of the Channel”
An Assessment of Brexit Risks for 54 Industries: Most Services Industries are also Exposed
The UK government this week admitted that it did not undertake sectoral impact assessments regarding the potential impacts of Brexit on individual sectors. Two of the main reasons for not undertaking such analyses is the fact that we do not yet know the outcome of the UK-EU negotiations on their future relationship as well as … Continue reading “An Assessment of Brexit Risks for 54 Industries: Most Services Industries are also Exposed”