Projects

The project involved research on inward investment policy in the UK in a context where Invest UK had decided to undertake a substantial and on-going survey of investor attitudes to the UK as a means of gathering more sophisticated intelligence on foreign investment trends. The EPRC research involved a pilot study of investors during 2000. This involved the development of a survey questionnaire and sample, a series of telephone interviews with investors and interpretation of the results in light of changes to the UK’s investment attractiveness

The project involved preparatory research and organisation of a major international conference on 'Benchmarking Regional Policy in Europe' in September 2001 . The meeting brought together senior regional policymakers from all ten Central and East European Candidate Countries as well as Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK. The aim of the conference was to provide a forum for informal but in-depth discussion on common regional policy challenges facing European countries. The conference represented an important opportunity to exchange experience in all aspects of structural and regional policy. Research papers prepared and presented by EPRC were used to guide and open discussion, with participants encouraged to make maximum use of the confidential setting for frank and open debate. Discussions during the two main conference days covered topics such as the evolution and form of national regional policy, EU competition policy constraints and their impact on policy-making, and the experience of implementing EU structural and cohesion policies.

The project involved research on the integration of the European Spatial Development Perspective (ESDP) and the Urban Framework for Action (UFA) into the 2000-06 Objective 1 Structural Fund programmes. Undertaken at the same time as a parallel Objective 2 project, it had three main aims: (i) to assess whether the Policy Guidelines and Aims of the ESDP and the policy options of the UFA had been integrated into the Objective 1 programmes; (ii) to consider how this had been done, and; (iii) to draw together an overview by providing a typology of the spatial and urban actions which correspond with the integration of ESDP and UFA guidelines, aims and options

The project involved research on the integration of the European Spatial Development Perspective (ESDP) and the Urban Framework for Action (UFA) into the 2000-06 Objective 2 Structural Fund programmes. Undertaken at the same time as a parallel Objective 1 project, it had three main aims: (i) to assess whether the Policy Guidelines and Aims of the ESDP and the policy options of the UFA had been integrated into the Objective 2 programmes; (ii) to consider how this had been done, and; (iii) to draw together an overview by providing a typology of the spatial and urban actions which correspond with the integration of ESDP and UFA guidelines, aims and options

The project involved a brief review of models of Public Private Partnership, an overview of practice in specific countries and a summary of the issues and lessons identified in the burgeoning international literature on Public Private Partnership. As the questions being addressed by European countries have more relevant lessons for local authorities in Nordic countries; the report mainly drew on lessons and practice from the European context.

The project involved a comparative study of regional incentives in selected case study countries and regions. The aim of the study was to situate Walloon regional policy in the wider European context with a view to presenting a range of policy options for further consideration, and, in particular, to: review the nature, institutional framework, coverage, value and importance of the regional policy grants in Wallonia and selected Member States (France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom; compare and contrast the regional policy grants in Wallonia with those found in the selected Member States; draw out possible policy options for Wallonia, based on this comparison.

The project involved research on the implications of EU enlargement for regional policy in the European Union and the facilitation of a Sub Rosa seminar held in Brussels, sponsored by Highlands & Islands Enterprise and the Scottish Executive.

This project reviewed the performance of monitoring and evaluation projects in the United Kingdom. It charted the evolution of monitoring Structural Funds in the UK from the early programmes to the present. It examined developments in the monitoring frameworks and systems in England, Wales and Scotland and presented regional case studies.Lastly, it re iewed the indicators used at different levels and their exploitation.

The project formed one of the background research studies written in preparation for the European Commission's Second Cohesion Report (adopted in January 2001). The study analysed the economic characteristics of enlargement and the patterns of regional disparity (eg. for GDP, unemployment and employment) in the Central and East European Candidate Countries and the current EU Member States. The types of regional problem evident in the Candidate Countries were identified, in part through a cluster analysis, and compared to the main regional problem categorisations in the EU-15. The study also looked at certain critical issues of enlargement - trade, investment and migration - including their potential regional and social impact. The final part of the research focused on projected patterns of disparity and the range of policy options and issues facing the design and delivery of future EU structural and cohesion policy in an enlarged EU. While the study focused on the ten Central and East European Candidate Countries, the research also looked at the projected impact on cohesion of the accession of the island economies of Cyprus and Malta.

The project involved a detailed examination of the possible consequences of enlargement for cohesion in the current EU Member States and in the candidate countries to support the preparation of the Second Report on Economic and Social Cohesion in the EU. The study clarified the main channels through which enlargement will affect national, regional and social cohesion in Europe, identifying the main similarities and contrasts between (relevant groupings of) regions and regional developments in Western and Eastern Europe, and produced a picture of the possible consequences of enlargement for regional disparities and social cohesion, e.g. employment opportunities and unemployment risks