How is Regional Policy Made:
A Critical Look at the Role of
Think Tanks?
Professor Peter Wells
Sheffield Hallam University
CURDS/ONE North East Regional Insights Seminar
University of Newcastle
5 November, 2008
Overview
Think Tanks in the UK
 Rise of Think Tank regional policy activity
 Assessing Think Tanks Role in Regional
Policy
 Conclusions

What is a think tank?
Essentially, think tanks seek to bridge the gap
between knowledge and power … The role of
think tanks is to link the two roles, that of
policymaker and academic, by conducting indepth analysis of certain issues and presenting
this research in easy-to-read, condensed form
for policy makers to absorb (McGann and
Johnson 2005, p. 12).
Think Tanks in the United Kingdom

Wide definition: over
100 organisations


spanning public policy,
health policy,
strategic/international
relations and religion,
and including political
networks and forums
Narrow definition of
active public policy
research institutes: ~
30 organisations
Centre-Left
Centre/
Liberal
CentreRight and
Right
Institute for Public
Policy Research
(IPPR)
Fabian Society
The Smith Institute
New Local
Government
Network
Reform
Policy
Exchange
Adam
Smith
Institute
Institute
for
Economic
Affairs
Independent, but
politically
engaged
Social Market
Foundation
New Economics
Foundation
Work Foundation
Demos
Rise of Think Tank activity and output
on regional policy

Over 50 reports, pamphlets and working papers published since
2002:
 Work Foundation: 22 reports


IPPR/IPPR North: 14 reports






Including ones on Devolution, and Social Capital in the North East
The Smith Institute 9 reports and pamphlets
NLGN: 4 reports
Policy Exchange: 3 reports


Including 15 Ideopolis City Region Reports and 4 working papers
The Cities (un)limited series
SMF: 2 reports
Reform: 1 report
NEF, Fabian Society, Demos, ASI and IEA: 0 reports.
A Typology of Think Tank Outputs
1.
Agenda setting research


2.
Position Papers


3.
Reform: Whitehall’s Last Colonies
SMF: Economic Nationalism or Progressive Globalisation?
Agenda Reinforcing

4.
IPPR: A New Regional Policy for the UK (2003)
Policy Exchange: Cities (un)Limited (2007/8)
Smith Institute: various edited volumes and pamphlets
Policy Development Programmes


IPPR North: Northern Economic Agenda Project
Work Foundation: Ideopolis: Knowledge City-Regions
Conceptual Coherence of Think Tank
Outputs

Review focused on:






Anatomy of the Regional Problem
Timing
Issues considered
Evidence
Policy recommendations
Reports considered



IPPR (2003) A New Regional Policy for the UK
Work Foundation (2006) Ideopolis: Knowledge CityRegions
Policy Exchange (2007/8) Cities (un)limited reports
IPPR (2004): A New Regional Policy
for the UK?

Anatomy of the regional problem: weak employment, output and
productivity
IPPR (2004): A New Regional Policy
for the UK?


Timing: influence of 2004 Spending Review, issues picked up through Northern
Economic Agenda Project
Issues covered:










The Scale of the Challenge
Employment and regional policy
The regional skills, education and training agenda
Science, innovation and the regions
Enterprise policy
Public spending and investment
Governance issues
A modern regional economic policy
Evidence: top-down regional statistics (GVA, employment, skills etc) with wide
ranging literature review
Policy recommendations:



Territorial justice: proactive national regional policy required to reduce disparities
Cross-cutting and multi-level government action required
Progressive devolution of powers
Work Foundation (2006): Ideopolis:
Knowledge City-Regions

Anatomy of the regional problem: lack of knowledge intensive
businesses and employees
Work Foundation (2006): Ideopolis:
Knowledge City-Regions


Timing: ongoing research projects conducted in sponsoring cities
Issues covered:

Knowledge matters for success in globalisation and for national competitiveness,
but of more importance is endogenous growth theory and that this permeates
HMT positions on skills, innovation and enterprise




Evidence:




Increasing the volume of knowledge intensive activity is essential if developed
economies are to remain prosperous
Knowledge intensity drives productivity growth
Cities matter to business in the knowledge economy: they are places that offer
organisations access to highly skilled workers, affluent consumers and the opportunity
to innovate and exchange ideas
selective review of literature and strong use of economic development theories
(NEG, EGT, agglomeration economies)
use of composite indicators (e.g. tipping points for knowledge intensive
occupations)
Lesson drawing from success stories of cities achieving a ‘critical mass’
Policy recommendations:




Broad definition of innovation (not just science and technology)
Joined-up action and local control over key domains (planning, transport)
Engage with universities as ‘key players’
Leadership at regional and local level matters
Policy Exchange (2007/8): Cities
(un)limited reports

Anatomy of the regional problem: failure of urban policy to follow the
market (labour/migration and capital)
Policy Exchange (2007/8): Cities
(un)limited reports




Timing: three reports over 2007/08 (analysis of problem, review of practice and
policy recommendations)
Issues covered:
 Starting point: persistent economic disparities between select towns and cities
 Focus: critique and ‘macro evaluation’ of UK urban policy
 Rationale/theory: (new) location theory of neo-classical economics, institutional
analysis, agglomeration and firm location. Urban policy intervention leads to suboptimal outcomes.
Evidence:
 Derived from a literature review with theoretical and methodological assumptions
drawn out
 Evaluation considers a set of urban areas using limited data
 Focus on urban/neighbourhood policies.
 Selective lesson drawing
Policy recommendations:




Expand London and select South East/East Anglia locations (Oxford, Cambridge
… and Swindon). Focus on growth locations in the north (Leeds)
Localise funding allocated previously to national programmes and give more
power to elected members whilst increasing local accountability
‘Manage’ decline in the north
A hidden agenda? reduce public spending through fiscal decentralisation
Conclusions

Political Dividing Line:
 Territorial Justice through a proactive regional policy
vs


Audience



National government and national party politics – dominant (national)
institutional structures matter
Almost silent on EU Regional Policy, technological change and
globalisation
Documentary analysis – only a starting point




Territorial Selection based on recent growth and deregulated planning
Evaluating rationale and coherence… but
Unclear how used by policy actors
Cannot comment on other forms of think tank activity (workshops,
informal networks etc)
Reports as organising narratives?


Except for the Ideopolis reports, they did not construct heuristic devices
Limited use of rhetorical imperatives
How is Regional Policy Made:
A Critical Look at the Role of
Think Tanks?
Peter Wells
Sheffield Hallam University
CURDS/ONE North East Regional Insights Seminar
University of Newcastle
5 November, 2008