The East Midlands: economy a joint response to changing economic circumstances

This document provides an assessment of the regional economy as the UK entered recession in 2008 and sets out how emda, local agencies and Government would work together to tackle the challenges posed by the recession

Overeducation across British regions

This paper analyses levels of over-education and wage returns to education for males across eleven regions of the UK using Labour Force Survey data. Significant differences are found in the probability of being over-educated across regions; also, differences are found in the return to the ‘correct’ level of education in each region, in each case associated with flexibility of movement between and into particular regions, which determines the ease of job matching. Furthermore, evidence is found that, after controlling for the level of education acquired, there exists a premium to the ‘correct’ level of education, which varies across UK regions

Representative actions and restorative justice: a report for the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform

Research into the need for and mechanisms to achieve satisfactory compensation for groups of consumers who have suffered detriment. The research was commissioned by the UK Government's Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Refor

ON THE PERFORMANCE OF NONPARAMETRIC SPECIFICATION TESTS IN REGRESSION MODELS

Some recently developed nonparametric specification tests for regression models are described in a unified way. The common characteristic of these tests is that they are consistent against any alternative hypothesis. The performance of the test statistics is compared by means of Monte Carlo simulations, analysing how heteroskedasticity, number of regressors and bandwidth selection influence the results. The statistics which do not use a bandwidth perform slightly better if the regression model has only one regressor; otherwise, some of the statistics which use a bandwidth behave better if the bandwidth is chosen adequately. These statistics are applied to test the specification of three commonly used Mincer-type wage equations with Uruguayan and Spanish data; all of them are rejected.

The government's review of sub-national economic development and regeneration: key issues

We are now in the midst of another concerted attempt by Government to make sense of and tidy up the sub-national governance of economic development and regeneration. This is a challenging task made all the more difficult by being undertaken in a UK context following a period of uneven devolutionary change and cross-cut by new and existing scales of institutions and spatial policies at the sub-regional, city-regional, regional and pan-regional levels as well as the economic slowdown. The current endeavour has taken the form of the Review of Sub-National Economic Development and Regeneration led by HM Treasury, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the Communities and Local Government department and the consultation Prosperous Places: Taking Forward the Review of Sub National Economic Development and Regeneration (hereafter SNR). We recognise that SNR is emergent 'policy-in-the-making', containing some potentially radical steps for government across a range of geographical levels, and represents a laudable attempt to establish a clearer framework replete with challenging opportunities for RDAs, local authorities and other existing and emergent spatial institutions. Our purpose here is to raise some key issues for debate and reflection as part of the process of addressing sub-national economic development and regeneration policy and governance

Colleges as agents for construction innovation - a case study

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to highlight the low level of adoption of innovative products in the UK and to illustrate, through a case study, an investigation into the potential for UK further education colleges (FECS) to extend their existing activity and develop a role as independent centres for specialist knowledge of innovative products. Design/methodology/approach - Two surveys were employed to test assumptions which had been previously published by Government departments (Departments of Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform [BBERR] and Trade and Industry [Dti]) focused on the level of knowledge and experience of construction SMEs regarding innovative products and processes. Six colleges collaborated and successfully bid for funding to test their ability to deliver a wider role in the construction community. Each appointed a full-time fully funded adviser to research, collect and diffuse information about a specific specialist area. Findings - The results indicate that there is evidence of the need for independent sources of information about innovative products. The colleges have shown their ability to build knowledge and capacity to offer independent advice. The outcome indicates, however, that without an effective business case and the commitment of senior college management teams the sustainability of the role is unlikely

Impacts of plug-in hybrid vehicles and combined heat and power technologies on electric and gas distribution network losses

Distribution network operators (DNOs) require strategies that can offset the tradeoffs new embedded technologies have on their assets. This paper employs modelling to show that through control device manipulation, gas and electric (G&E) network operators can influence savings in energy losses under the presence of plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) and combined heat and power technologies (CHPs). An integrated gas and electric optimal power flow (OPF) tool is introduced to undertake various case studies. The OPF tool evaluates the technical impacts experienced in the networks when DNOs apply a "plug and forget" operation strategy and then compares the results against a "loss minimisation" strategy. Results show the benefits in applying different strategies are more considerable in electric networks than in gas networks. The study corroborates that an integrated G&E analysis offers a fresh perspective for stakeholders in evaluating energy service networks performance under different operation strategies

Deal Making in Whitehall: competing and complementary motivations behind the Review of Sub-national Economic Development and Regeneration'

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to explore Whitehall motivations underpinning the Sub-national Review of Economic Development and Regeneration. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on interviews conducted with senior Whitehall officials involved in regional working. Findings – The Sub-national Review seeks to streamline regional structures and provide regions with enhanced autonomy. However, findings indicate that there are distinct differences of opinion across Whitehall departments regarding the future trajectory of English regionalism and what powers and functions regional bodies should acquire. These contradictory positions raise questions about the implementation and effectiveness of the proposals. Originality/value – An examination of these phenomena is intended to provide greater clarity regarding the opportunities and constraints presented by the latest phase of regional restructuring