Regions in focus: a "new regionalist" interpretation of England's Northwest (2003-2006)
OVERVIEW
Since the mid-1990s, a 'strong institutionalist' literature has been emerging in economic and political geography, which has sought to position changing local economic, political and social processes within a territorial context (see Peck, 2000; MacLeod, 2001a). As Jones (2001: 1202) has argued, there is a "need to consider the nation-state in relation to its scalar manifestations" in order to uncover events and processes occurring at a range of different scales (see also Low, 1997; Wood and Valler, 2001). This is because the national state is no longer seen as the pivotal 'scalar anchor point' for governing socio-economic and socio-political life: other scales have been emerging in the after-Fordist era as part of a trial-and-error search for the best 'institutional fix' for advanced capitalism (Jessop 2001). Within the literature, the 'resurgence of regions' has become a hotly debated topic (Jones and MacLeod, 1999; MacLeod and Jones, 2001), with suggestions that we are seeing the emergence of a distinct 'regional political economy' (Agnew, 2000; MacLeod, 2000) and more importantly a 'new regionalism' (Amin, 1999, 2001; Henry and Pinch, 2001; MacLeod 2001b). Amin (1999) posits that the ‘new regionalism’ is in fact a possible alternative to the prevailing neoliberal localist orthodoxy, because it broadly claims that contemporary capitalism and its territorial configuration are best regulated and governed in and through the decentralisation of socio-economic decision-making and associated policy implementation to regional-level institutions, frameworks and supports (see also Cooke and Morgan, 1994, 1998; Florida, 1995; Scott, 1998; Storper, 1997). New regionalist orthodoxy, therefore, posits a multi-sided argument for the decentralisation of autonomy, legitimacy, and power.
The 'new regionalism' is particularly important given the close links that have been emerging between these academic speculations and on-the-ground political and policy developments occurring mostly in North America and Western Europe. Indeed, in recent years political praxis has seen the decentralisation of responsibilities to sub-national institutional frameworks in attempt to increase wealth and accountability (see Keating 1998; Keating et al 2003; Tindale 1996). This leads authors such as Lovering to suggest that the new regionalism occupies the minds of academics, politicians, and policymakers alike (Lovering, 1999). The UK (and especially England through the implementation of the Regional Development Agencies) is no exception to this: since 1997, policymakers have increasingly cast 'envious eyes' towards the regional zones of the Atlantic and European growth economies (Caborn, 1996; DETR 1997; Murphy and Caborn, 1996). But while it is now widely accepted that England is seeking a greater engagement with these assumptions through state policies aimed at increasing 'institutional capacity' with a sub-national tier of governance - as outlined in the important publication of the White Paper, Your Region, Your Choice (DTLR 2002) and its proposals for directly-elected regional assemblies - critics ultimately believe that a 'thin' approach that is being adopted, whereby policy-makers are rescaling rather resolving the economic and democratic deficit (Jones 2001; Jones and MacLeod 1999; 2002). This argument is based on concerns that contradictions exist across four normatively charged policy assumptions (cf. DETR, 1997). These are: 1) a necessary link exists between economic competitiveness and the regional scale; 2) a necessary link also exists between regions and increased social participation, accountability and stakeholder democracy; 3) that all English regions can benefit from having sub-national frameworks and supports, and raise their GDP and competitiveness; and 4) that both 1 and 2 can be secured through new organisations such as Development Agencies.
What is becoming known as England’s 'new regional policy' (Adams et al 2003; DTI, ODPM, HM Treasury 2003), then, could contain a number of important policy tensions and political contradictions. But despite widespread scepticism towards new regional policy at the outset (for reviews, see Dungey and Newman, 1999; 2000; Jones, 2001; Tomaney, 2002), there has been a growing political recognition that regions are increasingly important for implementing many of New Labour’s core economic, social, and public policies, and also empowering local communities therein (DTLR, 2002). Consequently, the region has increasingly become mobilised into many of New Labour’s policies since 1999 - through initiatives as varied as enterprise and business support, inward investment, rural policy, urban policy, skills training and industrial productivity, land management and regeneration, and various competitiveness indicators—and is, therefore, the site for a large number of what appear to be differently scaled and territorialized agendas. Indicative of this, over the past 2 years the RDAs have been finding themselves squeezed form above by Westminster and Whitehall, with targets and calls for more joined-up territorial thinking, and from below by the demands of their local stakeholders, wanting more integrated economic and social development (for early tensions, see Robson et al, 2000; and chapters in Tomaney and Mawson, 2002).
By exploring a number of different policy strands, and by using the North West of England as an in-depth case study, this PhD project aims to give a greater understanding of England’s regions and their various roles as incubators of knowledge, learning, democracy and economic growth. In doing this, the project will connect back to leading debates in economic and political geography on the 'new institutionalism' and 'new regionalism'.
Building on these important academic and policy concerns, the PhD is concerned with addressing a number of key research questions centred on the formulation, implementation, and 'bedding-down' of Blair’s new regional policy in England.
(i) Integrated Regional Development, Balancing Urban and Rural Territorial Concerns: What approach has been adopted by the agencies operating at the regional level with respect to the administering and spatial targeting of funds? Is there a scenario occurring whereby the large urban centres are monopolising the funding or does this simply reflect the scale of the economic and social problems within a region? To uncover this, the research will analyse the implementation of rural and urban agendas and policy initiatives.
(ii) Economic Competitiveness and Social Inclusion: Built on a premise that RDAs are driven largely by economic concerns, there have been concerns that this could create a more growth at the expense of others mentality, in the process having a detrimental effect on important issues such as social inclusion (which they also have a strong remit to address). To uncover this, the research will analyse the implementation of business support and inward investment initiatives, alongside the role of RDAs in social regeneration through the Single Regeneration Budget Challenge Fund and policies such as the New Deal for Communities (linked to the Government Offices for the Regions).
(iii) Local Autonomy, Tackling National and Regional Policy Constraints: There seems to be an increasing chasm appearing between the rhetoric and the reality of England’s new regionalism. With regions being increasingly squeezed between the central state and their localities, how do their concerns feed into the national political and policy debate on the need for more flexibility? To uncover this, the research will analyse the levels of policy discretion given to RDAs, examine how this has emerged through time through the lobbying activities of RDA chairs, and will sketch the future scenarios for more autonomous economic regions in England.
(iv) Regional Accountability and Centralisation: Whilst in opposition the Labour Party enforced the need to roll back the tide of quangos and yet there is still a concern that institutions such as RDAs are not accountable to their regions. The development of regional chambers and regional assemblies is important here and the research will look at the ways in which the regional assemblies are involving, and are planning to involve in relation to a directly-elected model, their stakeholders in the socio-economic governance of regions.
Although these four strands have been variously documented within the academic literature on RDAs (see Deas and Ward 2000; Ward et al, 2000; Morgan, 2002; Harding et al, 1999; Murdoch and Tewdwr-Jones, 1999; Lloyd, 1999), they remain fragmented and seemingly diverse tensions within the English regional agenda. To date, these issues have not been integrated into a single territorial project that questions their multiple impacts. By focusing on England’s North West region, this project offers a multi-dimensional and dialectical policy take on Labour's new regional policy. In short, it provides a window on a much wider policy and academic world.
The North West is probably the most diverse of the English regions, because of its composite blend of cultural, social, political and economic factors (Jones and MacLeod 2002). Having suffered a long period of decline, the northern regions of England have been forced into a rapid restructuring of their economic activities, and have been witness to vociferous political lobbying for an increased hand in their own destiny (Mitchell, 2000). They currently occupy the bottom position in the economic league tables—critical indicators have the North West at 9% below the British average on regional GDP per capita; new firm formations are the lowest in Britain; and only 2% of regional GDP spent on Research & Development, compared with 4% in the Eastern region—and perhaps have the most to win through a 'new regionalist' institutional framework. On this basis, the North West region has grounds for relative optimism and through the North West Regional Development Agency (NWDA) it has the opportunity to punch its weight in the national, European and global market place. In short, there is a growing belief that the North West can capitalise on the opportunities being provided by New Labour (NWDA, 2000). Building on the success of the Commonwealth Games, 2003 has seen the North West monopolise the recent 'Soundings Exercise' on moves towards directly-elected assemblies. The ODPM findings have revealed that there is a large body of support for assemblies in this region, both from civil society actors and also key institutions in the locality (see ODPM, 2003). The North West has also secured Liverpool as the winning candidate for the Capital of Culture Award. In short, the North West is becoming a dynamic and evolutionary region, mixing cultural vibrancy with new spaces of economic opportunity.
My research will, therefore, use the North West region as a territorial space for addressing 'deeper engagements' that question the 'parameters and exclusions' (Peck, 1999) of England's new regional policy. My research will undertake a series of elite semi-structured interviews with key national and regional actors/agents/players. These fall into three categories. First, there will be people who are operating outside the North West region who are working in Whitehall and Westminster, deciding policies that affect the North West or sector-based representatives whose activities cross-cut the region. Second, there will be those people who at an institutional and organisational level have a degree of power to affect policies being formulated within the region. These people will be drawn from the regional agencies located in the North West (such as NWRDA and the regional assembly), political leaders from all three major parties, and business leaders, etc. Thirdly, there will be those on the receiving end of the policies and initiatives being delivered by the NWRDA and the regional assembly and these coalface actors will be brought together through interviews and focus groups. This approach to the collection of data has been adopted for two main reasons: firstly, interviews will be designed to work in conjunction with policy analysis in order to elaborate on key themes and silences (see Mason, 1996); and, secondly, it necessitates a critical understanding of the mechanics and dynamics behind the production of the policy content, context and trajectory for the North West region (see Sayer, 2002). All interviews will be fully transcribed, coded and analysed in order to tease out issues facing the North West region in its attempts to build institutional capacity and to stimulate economic growth. It is believed, then, that a composite blend of policy analysis and elite interviewing (plus also media and Hansard-based research) will provide the basis for in-depth interpretations of processes and events occurring within the North West regional space.