The national productivity recovery depends on getting people back to the office

Office workers continue to display reluctance to return to their workplaces, despite encouragement from the government for them to head back. The immediate consequences for the service jobs in cities which depend on people commuting into the office are apparent, hence the government drive. But is office work a good thing for the workers themselves? […]

Catalonia tries to avoid repeating history, but Spain has economic reality on its side

Karl Marx famously wrote: “History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce”. The phrase might well have been coined with Catalonia in mind. Generalissimo Franco began a military coup against the elected Spanish government in the Canary Islands in 1936. The battle spread across Spain, and Catalonia was the last redoubt of the Republic […]

How to stop tech hubs in urban hotspots from intensifying geographic inequalities

Media City

Perhaps George Osborne’s most abiding legacy from his time as chancellor will be the creation of the concept of the Northern Powerhouse. Certainly Manchester, its principal focus, is booming. The landscape of the centre is being altered dramatically by skyscrapers. Peel Holdings, the huge investment and property outfit, is planning to double the size of […]

The history of Wider Economic Benefits (WEBs)

Commuters

Paul Buchanan started WEBs, secured the original approval of WEBs by government and has continued to develop the techniques and spread the application of WEBs ever since. This series of blogs looks at some of the key changes and innovations that were introduced over time. They range from the original work on Crossrail, through early […]

High Speed North – building blocks for the Northern Powerhouse

An article by leading economist and member of the National Infrastructure Commission Bridget Rosewell. The National Infrastructure Commission launched its third report on 15th March looking the connectivity needs of the Northern Powerhouse.  Recommendations include improving the key rail link between Manchester and Leeds which is at the heart of the East West link, focusing […]

Paul Buchanan article for Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal

Volterra Partner and leading economist Paul Buchanan has written a paper for the Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal.  Paul’s article Transport, land use and economics is featured as one of many papers discussing urban regeneration and renewal in a complex contemporary climate. The publication is the essential peer-reviewed journal for all professionals concerned with physical, economic and […]

Integration won’t save the struggling Eurozone

Olivier Blanchard, the recently retired Head of Economics at the International Monetary Fund, has something of a track record with his predictions.  In 2013, he warned George Osborne that he was “playing with fire” with the UK’s recovery from the financial crisis.  Austerity had to be relaxed. We now know that we were actually nowhere […]

Volterra in the news: ‘unions are standing against progress’

Jo Valentine, Chief Executive of London First, spoke out against last weeks tube strike stating that by striking against the Night Tube ‘unions are standing against progress’. In an article for City AM Jo Valentine discussed the need for London to remain competitive on the global stage and refers to Volterra’s report for TfL in […]