The Birmingham Economic Review 2018: Key Challenges and Opportunities for Birmingham

The Birmingham Economic Review was produced in October 2018 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. Over the next few weeks, we will be producing … Continue reading “The Birmingham Economic Review 2018: Key Challenges and Opportunities for Birmingham”

Working towards collaboration between City-REDI and the Enterprise Research Centre

At the start of October researchers from the Enterprise Research Centre joined City-REDI at Winterbourne House at the University of Birmingham to share information on projects we are working on and consider how we might collaborate in the future. We have a number of areas of shared mutual interest and at the heart of both … Continue reading “Working towards collaboration between City-REDI and the Enterprise Research Centre”

City-REDI at the Party Conferences

City-REDI is delighted to be hosting fringe events at this year’s Labour and Conservative Party Conferences on the theme of Brexit. Findings from the University of Birmingham suggest that the UK’s cities and regions which voted for Brexit are also the most economically dependent on EU markets for their prosperity and viability. With differing sectoral … Continue reading “City-REDI at the Party Conferences”

A parade of great research in the ‘Rio De Janeiro of the Northern Hemisphere’: Reflections from the Global Conference on Economic Geography 2018 in Cologne

Last month, a team from City-REDI attended the 2018 Global Conference on Economic Geography. In this blog, Dr Tasos Kitsos provides a summary of the conference along with details of his current work.  The 2018 Global Conference on Economic Geography took place in sunny and hot Cologne, the German Carnival capital, 24-28 July. The conference attracted … Continue reading “A parade of great research in the ‘Rio De Janeiro of the Northern Hemisphere’: Reflections from the Global Conference on Economic Geography 2018 in Cologne”

At 70, the NHS Needs Wider Economy to Help Build Healthy Lives

The NHS cannot do everything on its own. A universal healthcare system is not responsible for all factors of the UK population’s healthy lives. Total health spending in England was about £125bn in 2017/18, with £110bn on the NHS, equivalent to 7% of GDP. This seems like huge numbers but if we think about it … Continue reading “At 70, the NHS Needs Wider Economy to Help Build Healthy Lives”

What Is Channel 4? Making the Case for Relocation and Knowing What You Are Getting…

The question of the Channel 4 move is an interesting one for me, as in my previous life as Head of Research for the North West Regional Development Agency I did some of the Salford Media City bid work, reviewing the economic case for investment and the bid for the BBC relocation, and now I … Continue reading “What Is Channel 4? Making the Case for Relocation and Knowing What You Are Getting…”

Channel 4’s HQ2: Where and Why?

Channel 4 is moving 300 staff out of London, with most going to a major British city.* The HQ2 shortlist has just been announced, and seven city-regions are on it: Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Greater Manchester and the West Midlands. The winner will be announced on 1 October. So, who should win? And what effects could the move have on … Continue reading “Channel 4’s HQ2: Where and Why?”

Battlegrounds or Labour Consolidation? – What to watch out for in this week’s local elections

This is the first England wide test of electoral opinion since last year’s snap general election.  Seats on around 150 councils and according to Britain Elects 4,425 seats will be up for grabs, 40 per cent (1,833) of which are in London. This includes most seats in the city conurbations, such as all 32 London … Continue reading “Battlegrounds or Labour Consolidation? – What to watch out for in this week’s local elections”

Commonwealth 2022 – How to maximise the impact of Mega Events

The Commonwealth Games coming to Birmingham have the potential to be a catalyst for change, the challenge is to maximise that change within the demanding timescales. Looking to past mega events and evaluations can help us quickly adapt and adopt best practice and make decisions at speed. Yesterday morning I was part of a panel … Continue reading “Commonwealth 2022 – How to maximise the impact of Mega Events”

Women in Economic Development Research – Why the Woman’s Voice is Crucial: Part 1, View from a Business Development Director

With the imminent arrival of International Women’s Day on the 8th March, City-REDI will be publishing a series of blogs celebrating women in economic development and the contribution we make. They are inspired by the current experience of City-REDI which is pretty unusual in its numbers of women at all levels in the team; from … Continue reading “Women in Economic Development Research – Why the Woman’s Voice is Crucial: Part 1, View from a Business Development Director”