No abstract

Since 1988, when the current EU Cohesion Policy was introduced, it has played an influential role in setting priorities for policies aimed at dealing with the effects of European economic integration on regional and social disparities. Although, latterly, the amount of money spent in the UK through the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) has declined, EU programmes have had a disproportionate effect on the design and implementation of UK policies shaping regional and local economic and social development. This paper starts by recalling how EU Cohesion Policy has functioned in the UK, then considers how Brexit may affect regional and social development and the need for a corresponding policy response, focusing on the sorts of policies currently supported by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (ESF). The paper shows that filling the policy vacuum will be far from straightforward because complementary national policies and institutional frameworks have lacked consistency or coherence. It concludes by examining the wider policy issues arising from rethinking domestic policy outside the ESIF framework. The sub-national level, in particular, will need a fresh approach following Brexit.

The financial crisis has reopened debate on the architecture of financial regulation and prudential supervision in the EU, calling into question the home country control principle that has prevailed since the mid-1980s. This article discusses how the growth of cross-border financial intermediation can best be regulated to limit the ensuing risks of financial contagion. It argues that a supranational supervisory system is now needed for some intermediaries, but that proximity to market actors at national level remains important. This points to a quasi-federal system as the way forward, but in constructing such a system account has to be taken of the diversity of Member State structures and preferences. The article concludes that even if a much more extensive EU-level competence is theoretically the optimal way forward, political considerations make it unlikely, suggesting that the crisis has broader implications for European integration.

No abstract

Regional development is one of the main EU spending priorities through its Cohesion Policy. Brexit is among several influences on the future of the policy, whose evolution is part of a wider reshaping of the principles and practice of regional policy in Europe. In the context of emerging policy challenges and recent contributions to the regional policy literature, the article highlights innovation, human capital and effective institutions as three crucial dimensions of future policy. It argues that a shift in regional policy priorities, governance and territorial focus is underway -partly influenced by place-based policy thinking -at EU level under Cohesion Policy as well as under national regional policies in the EU27 and the UK. KEYWORDSBrexit, EU Cohesion Policy, place-based policy, regional development, regional policy

No abstract

This article proposes and develops a concept - investability - that can be used for analysing the competitive position of cities or regions, and formulating policy responses. It can be defined as conditions that are conducive to a higher level of investment and refers principally to the business environment in which economic agents operate. The paper discusses various influences on investment decisions and how they will impinge on different classes of potential investors. Policy implications are developed and the ways in which the concept might be used in policy making are examined.Local, Economic, Development, Urban, And, Regional, Policy, Productive, Investment, Location, Decisions,

No abstract