If Scotland were to become an independent country, there would be a new international border with the rest of the UK. The additional costs that are inevitably created by borders would affect trade, making it harder for Scottish firms to do business with the rest of the UK. Borders between countries create additional costs for […]
Category: Nations, regions & cities
Scotland currently has limited tax-raising powers: its government does not collect or legislate over the broad-based taxes that are needed for high fiscal capacity. Developing a sense of common purpose is critical for nation-building – and it would be a key issue for an independent Scotland. Political economists understand that the power to tax is […]
Proposals to address the highly uneven economic performance of regions of the UK typically focus on the North-South divide in England. But the levelling-up agenda has implications for Scotland too, not least some striking inequalities across different parts of the nation. The idea of ‘levelling up’ is usually presented as a drive to tackle the […]
Were Scotland to become independent, it would naturally be a smaller economy than as part of the UK. The successes of such economies are highly contingent on state and society’s ability to capitalise on the strengths and minimise the vulnerabilities of small population size. Small states are at the centre of the Scottish independence debate. […]
Scotland may soon have a second referendum on whether to remain part of the UK. Economic issues will be a key part of the debate – from the fiscal policy institutions needed for an independent country to choice of currency and the future relationship with the European Union. Scotland’s first minister has announced the intention […]
Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, originally an informal group of the leading emerging economies of the early 2000s, have since experienced very different growth paths. Their significance in the global economy at a time of considerable geopolitical uncertainty remains an open question. Over the past two decades, there has been an astonishing restructuring […]
As the dust settles on the Senedd election results, the scale of the economic impact of Covid-19 in Wales is becoming clearer. In the face of huge challenges, the current fiscal outlook implies tough choices and trade-offs for the new Welsh Government. Despite the gradual re-opening of the economy and easing of restrictions over recent […]
Despite a recent divergence in Covid-19 restrictions between Scotland and the rest of the UK, outcomes during the pandemic have largely converged. Many of the economic challenges facing Scotland are longer term in nature. New restrictions in Scotland (and Wales) have led to, arguably, the greatest variation between the nations of the UK in how […]
A parliamentary bill seeks to override parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol. The proposed changes would be likely to have different effects across sectors. Recent discussions have called into question whether the Protocol has supported economic growth in Northern Ireland. The Northern Ireland Protocol has been a source of political and economic uncertainty since it […]
While the UK’s devolved nations have control over most of their public spending, their revenue raising powers are much more limited, particularly in Northern Ireland. Potential changes to improve the sustainability of its public finances – such as an increase in rates – are likely to be unpopular. The devolved nations of the UK have […]