Rebalancing UK regional and industrial policy post-Brexit and post-Covid-19: lessons learned and priorities for the future

In this paper, we examine the challenges and opportunities facing the UK’s industrial and regional policy in the context of the policy decisions made over recent decades. We argue that the overly centralized and sectoral logic of the UK governance systems has led to a lack of clarity in thinking through place-based issues. This, in turn, has resulted in policy ambiguity, confusion and contradictions, and successfully moving industrial policy and regional policy forward post-Brexit can only take place if conceptual and operational clarity is brought to these matters.