Brexit has major implications for regional development in the UK and EU27 – through effects on trade, foreign direct investment, labour markets and innovation. These effects are part of the broader challenges associated with the structural transformation of European economies. In particular for the UK, which has experienced a long-term increase in territorial inequality, there is a need to rethink the future objectives, priorities and resources of regional policies, not least because of the loss of EU Structural Funds. The implications of this inequality have become clear in the Brexit vote, but also in voting patterns across Europe.
These issues were the subject of a presentation by EPRC Director, Professor John Bachtler, supported by EPRC researcher Dr Wilbert den Hoed, at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy in The Hague on 11 March 2019. The audience comprised around 30 officials from different Dutch government departments responsible for innovation and business climate and stakeholders from provincial and local governments.
As the EPRC base at the Technical University of Delft (EPRC Delft) is built up, EPRC is developing its cooperation with Dutch government departments at different levels and with universities. The presentation at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, a longstanding partner in our EoRPA project, is one of a series of workshops and seminars in the Netherlands that have taken place over the past year.