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During the 1980s economic policy in the UK increasingly embraced free-market economics. For many, this was a necessary shift which improved economic performance, whereas previous periods of increased intervention, such as the 1930s, had harmed the UK economy. This article takes an alternative perspective. It argues that economic revival in the 1930s was primarily policy-induced; whereas economic growth in the 1980s can be largely explained by the unintentional demand side-effects of policy, with many of the free-market policies having, at best, a neutral impact and, in some cases, harming the long-run growth potential of the economy.

The impact of protectionism is currently a contentious policy issue. This book evaluates the effects of protectionism on the British interwar economy. In contrast to most studies of the period and the conclusions of orthodox economic theory, Kitson and Solomou show that the introduction of the General Tariff in 1932 provided a substantial stimulus to the domestic economy - a stimulus which can help to explain the trend improvement in British economic growth in the 1930s. The authors show that the tariff made encouraging import substitution and macroeconomic expansion. The empirical evidence is examined at two levels. First, a sectoral study shows that the newly protected sector of the 1930s saw an improvement in performance following the introduction of the tariff. Secondly, the large fall in manufacturing imports generated favourable effects on macroeconomic performance by helping to reduce the import propensity of the economy. The policy implication of this study is that trade policies should be constructed in the context of prevailing economic conditions and not solely with reference to sometimes inappropriate theoretical perspectives

ABSTRACTDiscriminatory protectionist policies in the 1930s are assumed to have led to a collapse of multilateral trading patterns. This paper examines the trends in bilateralism during the interwar period for a sample of ten countries. The findings show that, with the exception of Germany between 1934 and 1938, the level of bilateralism fluctuated but did not see a significant trend increase in the period of increased protectionism during the 1930s.

There is now a wide spread interest in regions as a key focus in the organization and governance of economic growth and wealth creation. This important book considers the factors that influence and shape the competitive performance of regions. This is not just an issue of academic interest and debate, but also of increasing policy deliberation and action. However, as the readings in this book make clear, the very idea of regional competitiveness is itself complex and contentious. Many academics and policy makers have used the concept without fully considering what is meant by the term and how

There is now a wide spread interest in regions as a key focus in the organization and governance of economic growth and wealth creation. This important book considers the factors that influence and shape the competitive performance of regions. This is not just an issue of academic interest and debate, but also of increasing policy deliberation and action. However, as the readings in this book make clear, the very idea of regional competitiveness is itself complex and contentious. Many academics and policy makers have used the concept without fully considering what is meant by the term and how.

"Der Aufsatz untersucht die Beziehungen zwischen Sozialkapital, wirtschaftlicher Leistung und regionaler Entwicklung, und betont die Vielschichtigkeit und Unbeständigkeit solcher Beziehungen über Entfernungen hinweg. Im Gegensatz zum konventionellen makroökonomischen Ansatz, der Indikatoren des Sozialkapitals für formale Wachstumsmodelle benutzt, wird eine fein abgestufte Analyse benötigt, welche die Auswirkung des Sozialkapitals nach Regionen bewertet. Zur Stützung dieser These untersucht der Aufsatz Sozialkapitaldaten von der Untersuchung des Sozialkapitalgemeinschaftsmaßstabs des Jahres 2000, die Sozialkapitaldaten für mehr als 24 000 Einzelpersonen bereitstellt, die in 40 Gemeinschaften leben, welche wiederum in 9 Regionen der USA zusammengefaßt werden. Diese Daten weisen eine regional außerordentliche Vielfalt des Sozialkapitals auf. Es wird eine mehrfach variable Analyse zur Untersuchung der Auswirkung der wirtschaftlichen und gesellschaftlichen Determinanten des Sozialkapitals benutzt, die zeigt, daß Schulbildung für fast alle Indikatoren des Sozialkapitals von Bedeutung ist, und daß ethnische Vielfalt mit geringeren Höhen des Sozialkapitals einhergeht. Darüberhinaus läßt die Analyse die Notwendigkeit erkennen, zwischen örtlichen und nicht-örtlichen Formen des Sozialkapitals zu unterscheiden. Der Aufsatz schließt mit dem Hinweis, daß einer zukünftigen Analyse des Sozialkapital ein region-spezifischeren Ansatz zur Untersuchung seiner Entwicklung und Auswirkungen einer zukünftigen Analyse des Sozialkapitals dienlich sein würde." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)