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Nicola Sturgeon's resignation as First Minister and leader of the SNP has thrown Scottish politics into flux. But beneath the superficial media coverage and frenetic party politics that followed her resignation, the fundamentals of the constitutional debate remain unaltered. One of these fundamentals, the extent to which Scotland is better or worse off being part of the UK political economy, is rarely debated in the depth it deserves. The parlous state of the UK economy and, in particular, the deeply entrenched territorial inequality that results from its extreme core‐periphery structure that safeguards the economic dominance of London and South East England, holds the potential for a surprise shift in the debate over independence to emerge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of 'inclusive growth' (IG) is discussed in a political economy framework. The article reports comparative analysis of economic and planning policy documents from Scotland, England and the UK and findings from expert workshops held in Scotland, which identify four key policy areas for 'inclusive growth': skills, transport and housing for young people; city-regional governance; childcare; and place-making. These policies share with the 'Foundational Economy' an emphasis on everyday infrastructure and services, but add an emphasis on inter-generational justice and stress the importance of community empowerment as much as re-municipalisation. Factors enabling IG policy development include: the necessary political powers; a unifying political discourse and civic institutions; and inclusive governance and participatory democracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is a composite paper bringing together six personal reflections on being supervised as doctoral students by Ronan Paddison. It contributes insightful and poignant voices of experience to a special issue commemorating the academic contributions – here with wider implications beyond the immediately 'academic' – of Ronan Paddison (1945–2019), the founder and for many years Editor-in-Chief of this journal, Space and Polity. The six sets of reflections have been authored independently of one another, but their cumulative effect is to demonstrate the depth of 'hidden' academic (and related) contribution made by Ronan to nurturing early career academics formally (through the doctoral supervision process) and more informally (in numerous ways and sometimes continuing well beyond the submission and award of a thesis). (Editorial abstract) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Real estate development is an intensely social process dependent on rich networks of relations between public and private sector actors. Previous work has explored how far such relations are formalised in large cities through shared coalitions of interest intended to promote urban growth. Relatively little attention has been given to networks in smaller cities, which is the concern of this paper. Drawing on detailed research in a small Scottish city, the paper explores how its local network was characterised by strong reliance on network construction and reproduction through trust and reputation. Significantly, within such local networks, competition and collaboration can exist side by side, without subsuming normal tensions into consistent agendas or formally defined 'partnerships'. Controlling land for urban expansion provides a particular focus for these tensions, since it can allow certain interests to gain network dominance. These findings raise important concerns around whether small cities should rely on informal networks to promote growth instead of constructing formal coalitions that may attract more externally based actors. Such choices have profound implications for the capacity and transparency of development networks, and thus for the accountability of the urban development process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reducing carbon emissions from the transport sector has become a critical imperative for public policy as our understanding of the impacts of the mobility system on the environment has developed. This paper contrasts policy development in three cities (Aberdeen, Bremen and Malmö) that collaborated as part of a European Union knowledge exchange programme designed to share innovative approaches to carbon reduction in the transport sector. We identify a number of critical aspects of governance, including the approach to policy formulation and implementation, and the status of consensus and cohesion, as key determinants of transport outcomes. We conclude that the degree of institutional alignment evident in each city’s governance network is crucial in explaining their appetite for the pursuit of low carbon policies, and in turn the real potential for policy transfer to occur as envisaged by European Union collaboration frameworks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to suggest new avenues for trust research by critiquing the extant literature on this topic. We analyse the most influential research on intraorganizational trust from the perspective of a classic industrial sociology framework from the 1970s – Alan Fox’s work on frames of reference and trust dynamics. Our analysis of intraorganizational trust studies leads us to three conclusions. First, the large majority of intraorganizational trust research has strong unitarist underpinnings, which support a managerial agenda that is potentially detrimental to employees’ (and indeed managers’) long-term interests. Second, most of this research fails to explain how trust in organizations is embedded in societal and field-level institutions, hence it would benefit from looking ‘beyond the factory gates’ for a more complete understanding of trust dynamics in organizations. In this connection, we argue that Fox’s pluralist and radical perspectives, which are under-represented in intraorganizational trust research, could provide new lines of inquiry by locating internal trust relations in a wider institutional context. Third, Fox’s explanation of how low and high trust dynamics in organizations are embedded in wider society may help address the concerns about under-socialized, endogenous explanations and open the way for structure-agency analyses of building, maintaining and repairing intraorganizational trust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

. Devolution has been described as a key 'global trend' over recent decades as governments have decentralised power and responsibilities to subordinate regional institutions. UK devolution is characterised by its asymmetrical nature with different territories granted different institutional arrangements and powers. This paper seeks to examine the role of state personnel in mobilising the new institutional machinery and managing the process of devolution, focusing on transport policy. The research presented shows a clear contrast between London and Northern Ireland, on the one hand, and Scotland and Wales, on the other, in terms of the effectiveness of political leaders in creating clear policy priorities and momentum in transport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Docherty I. and Mackie P. Planning for transport in the wake of Stern and Eddington, Regional Studies. The recent Stern and Eddington Reports for the UK Treasury emphasize the significance of the linkages between transport, land use, the environment, and the economy. Against that background, the purpose of this paper is to consider the future of transport planning in England given the liberalizing thrust of the Barker Review on land-use planning and the subsequent White Paper Planning for a Sustainable Future (2007). In reviewing the demographic and economic assumptions of the White Paper, it is concluded that in certain respects there are important mismatches between the emerging government policy on strategic planning and the Stern and Eddington Reports. [image omitted] Docherty I. et Mackie P. Planifier le transport a la suite des rapports de Stern et d'Eddington, Regional Studies. Les recents rapports Stern et Eddington, rediges au nom du ministere des Finances au Royaume-Uni, soulignent l'importance des liens qui existent entre le transport, l'occupation du sol, l'environnement et l'economie. Sur un tel fond, cet article cherche a considerer le futur de la planification du transport en Angleterre etant donne l'impulsion liberalisee donnee par la Barker Review sur l'occupation du sol et vu le projet de loi ulterieur Planifier un avenir durable (2007). En faisant la critique des suppositions demographiques et economiques du projet de loi, on conclut qu'il y a a certains egards d'importantes disparites entre la politique gouvernementale sur la planification strategique et les rapports Stern et Eddington. Transport Planification Avenir durable Occupation du sol Docherty I. und Mackie P. Verkehrsplanung im Anschluss an Stern und Eddington, Regional Studies. In den jungsten Berichten von Stern und Eddington fur das britische Finanzministerium wird die Bedeutung der Verknupfungen zwischen Verkehr, Landnutzung, Umwelt und Wirtschaft betont. Vor diesem Hintergrund soll mit diesem Beitrag die Zukunft der Verkehrsplanung in England untersucht werden, insbesondere im Hinblick auf die Liberalisierungsbemuhungen im Barker-Gutachten zur Planung der Landnutzung sowie in der anschliessendem Weissbuchplanung fur nachhaltige Zukunft (2007). Nach einer Uberprufung der demografischen und wirtschaftlichen Annahmen des Weissbuchs ziehen wir den Schluss, dass die entstehende Regierungspolitik zur strategischen Planung hinsichtlich bestimmter Aspekte erheblich von Sterns und Eddingtons Berichten abweicht. Verkehr Planung Nachhaltigkeit Landnutzung Docherty I. y Mackie P. Planificacion para el transporte tras Stern y Eddington, Regional Studies. En los recientes informes de Stern y Eddington para el Ministerio de Hacienda del Reino Unido se pone de relieve la importancia de los vinculos entre transporte, uso del suelo, medio ambiente y economia. Con estos datos, en este articulo analizamos el futuro de la planificacion del transporte en Inglaterra, teniendo en cuenta el empuje liberal del Informe Barker sobre la planificacion del uso del suelo y la posterior Planificacion del Libro Blanco para un Futuro Sostenible (2007). Al revisar las hipotesis demograficas y economicas del Libro Blanco, concluimos que en ciertos aspectos existen importantes incompatibilidades entre la nueva politica gubernamental sobre la planificacion estrategica y los Informes de Stern y Eddington. Transporte Planificacion Sostenibilidad Uso del suelo [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Britain's major cities have fallen behind the best practice in transport of European and north American cities, and need to address this to compete in global markets. A number of potential mechanisms are available to UK cities, but only if central government is willing to transfer (limited) financial powers to the city regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tensions between individual liberty and collective social justice characterise many advanced liberal societies. These tensions are reflected in the challenges posed for representative democracy both by participatory democratic practices and by the current emphasis on (so-called) responsible participation. Based on the example of 'community' housing associations in Scotland, this paper explores these tensions. It is argued that the critique of responsibility may have been over-stated, that, in particular, 'community' housing associations offer the basis for relatively more inclusive and effective processes of decision making than council housing, which relies on the traditional processes and institutions of representative local government for its legitimacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academics have long been accustomed to playing multiple roles (teacher, researcher, expert and critic). But as university management needs increasingly to demonstrate its relevance and value to the economy and society, so consultancy has assumed greater significance. This article explores the emerging fractures in the landscape of academic consulting, focusing on how consultancy activity impacts on research standards, and the ability of academics to maintain their critical roles as independent figures capable of holding government and other public organizations to account, so that their contribution to improving public policy can be maximized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article critically reviews how the Scottish Executive's approach to transport has developed since devolution. Although there is much to commend, a number of concerns can be identified, including the possibility that a number of strategic infrastructure schemes appear to have been approved on political rather than on technical grounds. It is difficult to know whether the current set of transport infrastructure investment plans represents good value for public money. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper uses survey and qualitative evidence from four neighbourhoods in two cities to explore the hypothesis that citizen participation in urban governance is fostered by political structures and public policy as well as by a civic culture supportive of citizen involvement. The analysis shows that although the prospects for citizen participation are likely to be least propitious in poor neighbourhoods demonstrating lower educational attainment levels, for example, such factors may be mitigated by political mobilisation and the approaches to urban governance, including citizen participation, adopted by local institutions. Citizen participation may be fostered as much by the creation of opportunity structures that build confidence in the efficacy of participation as by the intrinsic levels of civic culture. The key policy lesson is that the effort devoted to creating greater institutional thickness and participatory structures is not wasted. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper uses survey and qualitative evidence from four neighbourhoods in two cities to explore the hypothesis that citizen participation in urban governance is fostered by political structures and public policy as well as by a civic culture supportive of citizen involvement. The analysis shows that although the prospects for citizen participation are likely to be least propitious in poor neighbourhoods demonstrating lower educational attainment levels, for example, such factors may be mitigated by political mobilisation and the approaches to urban governance, including citizen participation, adopted by local institutions. Citizen participation may be fostered as much by the creation of opportunity structures that build confidence in the efficacy of participation as by the intrinsic levels of civic culture. The key policy lesson is that the effort devoted to creating greater institutional thickness and participatory structures is not wasted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an analysis of Transport 2010, the government’s ten-year plan for transport. It develops discussions held by members of the RGS-IBG’s Transport Geography Research Group (TGRG) in September 2000. It is argued that the plan marks something of a return to previous policies designed to accommodate increasing mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban regime theory has become a favoured tool of analysis for students of city politics. It provides a consistent evaluative framework with which to analyse the operation of local politics in contrasting cities. Recent applications have sought to extend the reach of regime analysis beyond the US, and to integrate the theory with other urban political and geographical analyses. This paper reflects both of these concerns by applying the insights into power structures and coalition formation in city politics provided by regime theory, and particularly Stoker and Mossberger's (1994) typology of regime characteristics. This is valuable in informing the (re)emerging debates over the preferred spatial and functional structure of urban local governance in the UK. By comparing the development of policy in a particular field, urban rail transportation, the characteristics of two different local institutional mixes, the 'city-regional' and the 'public choice', are demonstrated to exert profound influences on the composition, operation and aspirations of local regimes. The differences in decision-making strategies and policy outcomes that arise are suggested to have significant implications for the preferred spatial structure of local authorities, and the level of public accountability they achieve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assesses the Scottish government's document on transportation policy entitled 'Travel Choices for Scotland.' Problems related to increasing car ownership; Objectives of modal integration and sustainability; Growth in the use of motor vehicles; Public transportation improvements; Importance of land-use planning to the transport system.

The authors discuss the paper of Arthur Midwinter regarding fiscal autonomy of Scotland which appeared in the January 2012 issue of the periodical "Public Money & Management." They consider the argument of Midwinter to be informative which reflects on the financial position of Great Britain. They state that the view of Midwinter is just an introduction of a federal system of a government which contradicts to the core assumptions of British constitutional practice.

Discusses the problems and prospects for transport policy in Scotland. Focus of the second Scottish Parliament and Executive; Series of government policy statements concerning transport policy; Scottish Executive's release of a "Transport Delivery Plan" which was designed to monitor the progress and map out a future program for policy implementation.