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on Economic Geography |
| By: | Blackaby, David H. (Swansea University); Drinkwater, Stephen (University of Roehampton); Robinson, Catherine (University of Kent) |
| Abstract: | There were large regional differentials in the Brexit vote. Most notably, the percentage voting to leave the EU ranged from 38% in Scotland and 40% in London to 59% in the East and West Midlands. Turnout also varied across Britain, from a low of 67% in Scotland to 77% in the South East and South West. Existing empirical studies have tended to focus on the demographic composition of geographical areas to identify the key socio-economic characteristics in explaining spatial and other variations in the leave vote - with age and education found to be important drivers. We use the British Social Attitudes Survey to provide a more nuanced picture of regional differences in the Brexit vote by examining in particular the role that national identity and attitudes towards immigration played. In addition to education, we find that national identity exerted a strong influence on the probability voting leave in several English regions, including the East, North East, London and South East. Whereas, over and above this, concerns about immigration had a quantitatively large and highly significant impact in all regions bar London, and the East to a lesser extent. Differences by country of birth are also explored, with national identity and concerns about immigration having a larger impact for the English-born. Our findings are then discussed in the light of changes that have affected regional economies during the process of increased globalisation, austerity, the current Covid-19 crisis and recent UK government announcements to rebalance the economy. |
| Keywords: | Brexit, regional economies, globalisation, immigration |
| JEL: | D72 R11 F60 J61 |
| Date: | 2020–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp13579&r=all |
| By: | KICHKO Sergey, (HSE University); LIANG Wen-Jung, (National Dong Hwa University); MAI Chao-Cheng, (Academia Sinica and Tamkang University); THISSE Jacques-François, (CORE, UCLouvain; HSE University and CEPR) |
| Abstract: | Science parks play a growing role in knowledge-based economies by accommodating high-tech firms and providing an environment that fosters location-dependent knowledge spillovers and promote R&D investments by firms. Yet, not much is known about the economic conditions under which such entities may form in equilibrium without government interventions. This paper develops a spatial equilibrium model with a competitive final sector and a monopolistically competitive intermediate sector, which allows us to determine necessary and sufficient conditions for a science park to emerge as an equilibrium outcome. We show that strongly localized knowledge spillovers, skilled labor abundance, and low commuting costs are key drivers for a science park to form. Not only is the productivity of the final sector higher when intermediate firms cluster, but a science park hosts more intermediate firms, more researchers and more production workers, and yields greater worker welfare, compared to a counterfactual flat city. With continual improvements in infrastructure and communication technology that lowers coordination costs, science parks will eventually be fragmented. |
| Keywords: | science park, knowledge spillovers, intermadiate firm clustering, land use, worker commuting, R&D |
| JEL: | D51 L22 O33 R13 |
| Date: | 2020–02–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cor:louvco:2020015&r=all |
| By: | Paul Kilgarriff; Martin Charlton |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the spatial distribution of income in Ireland. Median gross household disposable income data from the CSO, available at the Electoral Division (ED) level, is used to explore the spatial variability in income. Geary's C highlights the spatial dependence of income, highlighting that the distribution of income is not random across space and is influenced by location. Given the presence of spatial autocorrelation, utilising a global OLS regression will lead to biased results. Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) is used to examine the spatial heterogeneity of income and the impact of local demographic drivers on income. GWR results show the demographic drivers have varying levels of influence on income across locations. Lone parent has a stronger negative impact in the Cork commuter belt than it does in the Dublin commuter belt. The relationship between household income and the demographic context of the area is a complicated one. This paper attempts to examine these relationships acknowledging the impact of space. |
| Date: | 2020–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2008.11720&r=all |
| By: | Stefan Jestl (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Ambre Maucorps (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Roman Römisch (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw) |
| Abstract: | This paper analyses the effects of the EU Cohesion Policy (CP) on the economic growth of 276 European NUTS-2 regions between 2008 and 2016. Using a structural equation model (SEM) consisting of both a measurement component (with two latent variables) and a structural component, we estimate the impact of CP funding on the growth of GDP per capita across EU regions. The estimation also enables us to predict changes in the growth of GDP per capita based on a scenario of CP funding reallocation between member states. Overcoming the limitations of traditional linear regression, SEM modelling proves to be a promising method for impact evaluation, also allowing for the inclusion of indirect causal paths and feedback loops to depict, for example, cross-border economic spillover effects. |
| Keywords: | Cohesion Policy, regional economic growth, structural equation modelling |
| JEL: | C38 C39 R11 R12 R58 |
| Date: | 2020–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wii:wpaper:185&r=all |
| By: | Roman Römisch (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw) |
| Abstract: | This paper develops a simple method to consistently break down world input-output tables to regional input-output tables. They are used to estimate Cohesion Policy-induced demand spillovers in the EU, covering the years 2007-2018. Results indicate that Cohesion spillovers from less developed regions to other regions exceed 40% of their initial EU support in some cases. In addition, spillovers from the more developed regions are equivalent to 24% of their initial EU support. This shows that the existing trade and investment linkages across the EU regions are strong and not only run from less developed to more developed regions but also vice versa. Our results are good news for the net paying regions in the EU. Taking into account capacity growth effects, Cohesion Policy spillovers might well be a multiple of the pure demand spillovers estimated in this paper. Thus, for net paying regions, Cohesion Policy is not only an act of European solidarity but also a rational long-run economic growth policy. |
| Keywords: | Cohesion Policy, Input-Output Analysis, EU Regions, Regional Development |
| JEL: | C67 D57 R11 R15 R58 |
| Date: | 2020–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wii:wpaper:184&r=all |
| By: | Cho, Seung Jin (Iowa State University); Lee, Jun Yeong (Iowa State University); Winters, John V. (Iowa State University) |
| Abstract: | We examine effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on employment losses across metropolitan area status and population size. Non-metropolitan and metropolitan areas of all sizes experienced significant employment losses, but the impacts are much larger in large metropolitan areas. Employment losses manifest as increased unemployment, labor force withdrawal, and temporary absence from work. We examine the role of individual and local area characteristics in explaining differing employment losses across metropolitan status and size. The local COVID-19 infection rate is a major driver of differences across MSA size. Industry mix and employment density also matter. The pandemic significantly altered urban economic activity. |
| Keywords: | COVID-19, pandemic, employment, agglomeration, urbanization, cities, density |
| JEL: | J2 R2 |
| Date: | 2020–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp13468&r=all |