New Wealth for Old Nations provides a guide to policy priorities in small or regional economies. It will be of interest to policymakers, students, and scholars seeking avenues to improved growth, greater opportunity, and better governance. Some of the world’s leading economists combine their research insights with a discussion of the practicalities of implementing structural reforms. Scotland is the ideal case study: the recent devolution of government in the United Kingdom offers a natural experiment in political economy, one whose lessons apply to almost any small, advanced economy.
One fundamental conclusion is that policy can make a big difference to long-term prosperity in small economies open to flows of knowledge, investment, and migrants. Indeed the difficulty in introducing growth-oriented policies lies more in the politics of implementing change than in the theoretical diagnosis. Public sector governance is consequently a key issue in creating a pro-growth consensus. And faster growth must be seen to improve opportunities for the population as a whole. Further, setting out the evidence—as this book does for Scotland—is vital to overcoming entrenched institutional barriers to policy reform. The first chapter is by Jo Armstrong, John McLaren, and the editors; and the subsequent chapters are by Paul Krugman, William Baumol, Edward Glaeser, Paul Hallwood and Ronald MacDonald, James Heckman and Dimitriy Masterov, Heather Joshi and Robert Wright, Nicholas Crafts, and John Bradley.
Diane Coyle is a consultant and member of the United Kingdom's Competition Commission and a Visiting Professor at the University of Manchester's Institute of Political and Economic Governance. Wendy Alexander is a Member of the Scottish Parliament and former Scottish Minister for Enterprise, Transport, and Lifelong Learning. Brian Ashcroft is Professor of Economics and Policy Director of the Fraser of Allander Institute for Research on the Scottish Economy at the University of Strathclyde.
"New Wealth for Old Nations focuses on the challenge of improving prosperity in small open economies committed to social justice and environmental sustainability. . . . The strengths of the collection lie mainly in the astute insights and systematic analysis in the individual chapters. The book is a valuable and polished set of essays with many interesting observations on the complex dynamics and drivers of regional economic development."—Ivan
Turok, Journal of Regional Science
"Many of Europe's early industrialized regions face similar difficulties in finding a new engine to boost growth despite tremendous efforts by national governments. Some outstanding economists join forces here to understand how Scotland could improve regional growth. In doing so they provide an integrated and global view of the issues at stake in a way that is understandable to many readers, and bring to the fore neglected questions. New Wealth for Old Nations will lead not only decision makers but also scholars interested in local development to look at regions and growth in a new and more effective way."—Jacques Thisse, Center for Operations Research and Econometrics, Université catholique de Louvai
"This book, dedicated to analyzing new approaches to growth in small economies, with a particular focus on Scotland, is replete with interesting, stimulating, and insightful chapters. Each chapter is not only technically competent but is written in a lively and compelling manner. Each addresses economic growth from a broad spectrum of perspectives, spanning enterprise and innovation, to the mobility of skilled labor, to demographics and the governance of public services. The introduction provides an excellent context."—David B. Audretsch, Director, Entrepreneurship, Growth, and Public Policy Group, Max Planck Institute
"The exceptional quality of the contributors and the skills of the editors combine with well-balanced and comprehensive coverage and with first-rate writing to make this book a compelling read."—Barry Eichengreen, University of California, Berkeley
