REDI to Debate – The Effect of COVID-19 on Levelling-Up and the Government’s Green Book

Welcome to REDI to Debate in the first edition of REDI-Updates. REDI-Updates is a bi-annual publication which will get behind the data and translate it into understandable terms. WM REDI staff and guest contributors will discuss various topics, with this first publication focusing on how inclusive growth can be a tool to tackle regional imbalances … Continue reading “REDI to Debate – The Effect of COVID-19 on Levelling-Up and the Government’s Green Book”

‘Getting on the Ladder’ – Challenges Facing Young People Leaving Education During COVID-19

Professor Anne Green looks at both the short and longer-term effects that COVID-19 will have on youth employment levels, as well as the influence different levels of education will have on this. Getting On The Career Ladder – Challenges for the Young When unemployment rates were relatively low and employment rates high a key concern … Continue reading “‘Getting on the Ladder’ – Challenges Facing Young People Leaving Education During COVID-19”

COVID-19 Diversification Measures: What Local and Regional Governments Can Do?

COVID-19 and Brexit are putting our value chains in danger. How can an economic diversification strategy help in this process? And what can local and regional governments do about it? COVID-19 and Brexit are affecting the UK industrial fabric in different ways, but in particular, the sudden deglobalisation effects they create can lead to trade … Continue reading “COVID-19 Diversification Measures: What Local and Regional Governments Can Do?”

REDI-Updates 1: Editor’s Welcome: Inclusive Growth Is More Important Than Ever

Foreword – by Simon Collinson and Ben Brittain When we began writing this, our first edition of REDI-Updates, the Covid-19 pandemic was a small and distant threat. A local crisis limited to a single city-region in China. The world has changed dramatically since then. As we re-focus our research efforts and our analytics towards projects … Continue reading “REDI-Updates 1: Editor’s Welcome: Inclusive Growth Is More Important Than Ever”

West Midlands Weekly Economic Impact Monitor – 1st May 2020

WM REDI has been tasked with providing an up to date monitor of the current Covid-19 economic impacts, on a weekly basis. These reports will help regional partners to shape responses and interventions to boost the region’s resilience so that it can thrive going forward. Each week the focus of the report is based on … Continue reading “West Midlands Weekly Economic Impact Monitor – 1st May 2020”

Estimates of the Local Impact in the West Midlands of the OBR Scenario of a 35% Reduction in Real GDP in Q2 2020

The Office of Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) COVID-19 analysis published on 14th April 2020 makes clear that on the basis of evidence from past pandemics the economic impact of the crisis will arise less from illness and death than from the reduction in demand for goods and services stemming from public health restrictions and social distancing … Continue reading “Estimates of the Local Impact in the West Midlands of the OBR Scenario of a 35% Reduction in Real GDP in Q2 2020”

West Midlands Weekly Economic Impact Monitor – 24 April 2020

WM REDI has been tasked with providing an up to date monitor of the current COVID-19 economic impacts to help regional partners to shape responses and interventions to ensure the region continues to thrive. The weekly monitor brings together data and intelligence from the WM REDI partnership into one single source which can be shared … Continue reading “West Midlands Weekly Economic Impact Monitor – 24 April 2020”

Identifying Exposure: What Do the IFS Estimates on the Coronavirus Sector Shutdown Mean for the West Midlands?

On April 6th 2020 the Institute for Fiscal Studies published a briefing note about which workers are most exposed to the COVID-19 lockdown. In this blog, Tasos Kitsos looks at the relevant figures for a range of sub-national areas focussing on West Midlands Combined Authority and constituent LEPs and Local Authorities. The sectors directly affected … Continue reading “Identifying Exposure: What Do the IFS Estimates on the Coronavirus Sector Shutdown Mean for the West Midlands?”

Local Resilience and the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Economic Crisis

First things first, stay in as much as possible. Never before such a simple action could have such a big impact. From protecting your loved ones to helping the economy, staying in is currently one of our best weapons. The more we stay in, the quicker we will be out of this challenge. Beyond the … Continue reading “Local Resilience and the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Economic Crisis”

Economic Exposure to COVID-19 (Part III): The Situation in the West Midlands Region – The Sectoral Effects of a Lockdown

Like any good Hollywood blockbuster you can think of, here we finish the trilogy of blogs related to the economic exposure to COVID-19 of the West Midlands’ sectors [1]. If you are still reading this series and you are not overwhelmed yet by the amount of information (and disinformation) related to the pandemic, I hope … Continue reading “Economic Exposure to COVID-19 (Part III): The Situation in the West Midlands Region – The Sectoral Effects of a Lockdown”