Economic Development - UK 🇬🇧 (+ Coggeshall, Essex)

Question 1

What are the important industries in the UK?

Answer 1

Services, finance, information technology, research

Question 2

Why are services an important industry?

Answer 2

Retail employs about 4 million people in UK

Question 3

Why is finance an important industry?

Answer 3

Home to many global finance institutions, e.g. HSBC has its HQ here

Question 4

Why are IT services an important industry?

Answer 4

Over 670,000 people work in this industry (e.g. Microsoft)

Question 5

Why is research an important industry?

Answer 5

Research and development (R&D) is increasing in the UK, making use of Uni graduates
2016- £33 billion spent on R&D

Question 6

Where are quaternary industries found?

Answer 6

Science and business parks

Question 7

Where are science and business parks located?

Answer 7

On the outskirts of cities, near housing and good transport links (airports, motorways)
Near universities so that research businesses in science parks can work with them

Question 8

Why have the number of science and business parks grown?

Answer 8

• large and growing demand for high-tech products, these parks help develop them
• UK has a high number of respected universities for these parks to work with
• clusters of related businesses in one place can boost each other

Question 9

What are the 3 main causes of economic change in the UK?

Answer 9

• de-industrialisation
• globalisation
• government policies

Question 10

Why has de-industrialisation caused economic change?

Answer 10

• it has declined as increased automation led to job losses in manufacturing jobs
• other countries industrialised, produce goods more cheaply than UK - increased competition forced some UK industries to close

Question 11

Why has globalisation caused economic change?

Answer 11

• manufacturing moved overseas, labour costs are lower
• some TNCs moved some of their tertiary and quaternary operations to UK (Apple employs 6500 people in UK)
• trade with other countries is an increasing important part of UK GDP - proportion of UK’s GDP that comes from foreign trade increased from 38% in 1965 to 62% in 2017

Question 12

Why have government policies caused economic change?

Answer 12

• government decisions on investment and support for businesses affect economy
• government carried out deregulation which encouraged entrepreneurs and investors to move to UK, helped industries
• membership of trade agreements and organisations makes it easier for companies in UK to operate across world and manufacture overseas

Question 13

What are the negative impacts of industry on the environment?

Answer 13

• pollutants and greenhouse gases into atmosphere
• using lots of water and energy
• extracting raw materials damages environment by destroying habitats and releasing toxic chemicals into water

Question 14

What transport networks has the UK improved?

Answer 14

Roads, railways, airports, ports

Question 15

How has the UK improved roads?

Answer 15

• capacity on motorways is being increased to ‘smart motorways’ with extra lanes
• 2015-2020 plans to creates 400 miles of new road capacity

Question 16

How has the UK improved railways?

Answer 16

-cross rail will increase central London’s rail capacity by 10% when it opens fully
- HS2 linking London, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester would increase capacity and allow faster journeys

Question 17

How has the UK improved airports?

Answer 17

• new runway needed in south east
• third runway at Heathrow, allow an extra 700 planes a day - increase noise and air pollution and greenhouse gases

Question 18

How has the UK improved ports?

Answer 18

• new port, London Gateway, opened at mouth of river Thames in 2013 - hub for global trade
• other ports (Felixstowe) increasing capacity

Question 19

How is the UK connected to the wider world?

Answer 19

• trade
• culture
• immigration
• transport
• electronic communications

Question 20

How has trade linked the UK with the wider world?

Answer 20

UK trades globally, overseas exports are worth £160 billion per year
Links with USA, Europe and Asia are very important

Question 21

How has culture and immigration linked the UK with the wider world?

Answer 21

UK’s strong creative industry means that our culture is exported worldwide e.g. films and tv shows
Immigration has helped to shape the UK’s culture, leading to diversity in food, art and music, etc.

Question 22

How has transport linked the UK with the wider world?

Answer 22

• Channel Tunnel links UK to France, providing a route to Europe
• airports act as an international hub, linking UK to rest of world

Question 23

How have electronic communications linked the UK with the wider world?

Answer 23

• telephones and internet make it easier to communicate with people globally, strengthening UK’s links overseas

Question 24

What are the UK’s political and economic links with the wider world:

Answer 24

• UK was in the European Union, it is a political partnership of 27 countries. UK left in 2020
• Comminwealth: association of 54 states, including UK and its former colonies, promotes cooperation between member countries e.g. sports and trade

Question 25

Causes of population growth in rural areas (Coggeshall, Essex)

Answer 25

- village has road links along A120 to major settlements - history of 300 listed buildings - train service from nearby Kelvedon gets commuters into London in 40 mins - location in rural area makes this an inviting environment and pleasant community

Question 26

Positive effects of population growth in rural areas (Coggeshall, Essex)

Answer 26

- local healthcare and education services are well used by the growing population and are high standard - local business are thriving and new shops are successful - increasing population means historical sites get enough income to stay open - greater variety to social events caused by larger number and range of residents

Question 27

Negative effects of population growth in rural areas (Coggeshall, Essex)

Answer 27

- air pollution levels from increased vehicle use make environment unpleasant - 4000 people now live in Coggeshall meaning village is becoming a town - many new residents are unaware of local cultures or events so they are dying out - historic families of village are being priced out due to rising house prices caused by demand

Question 28

What is the cycle of urban decline?

Answer 28

People, young, leave for more opportunities in urban areas ⬇️ Employers find it difficult to recruit labour ⬇️ Less investment happens in the area and business shut ⬇️ Less money, less employment and fewer people leads to shops and services declining ⬇️ People notice decline and lower quality of life 🔄

Question 29

What has caused the North-South divide?

Answer 29

Decline of heavy industry had a more negative impact on the north of UK, but the growth of post-industrial services mostly benefited the south

Question 30

Evidence for the North-South divide:

Answer 30

- wages are generally lower in north e.g. 2014 average weekly wage in Huddersfield was 40% lower than in London - health is generally worse in the north than the south e.g. life expectancy for male babies born in Glasgow in 2012 was 72.6, but in east Dorset it was 82.9 - eduction: GCSE results were generally better in south than north and midlands

Question 31

What are the exceptions to the north-south divide?

Answer 31

There are wealthy areas in north (Cheshire) and places with high deprivation in south (some areas of Cornwall) Some cities don’t fit the trends, and not everything is worse in the south

Question 32

How is the UK reducing the north-south divide?

Answer 32

- devolving more powers - creating enterprise zones - the northern powerhouse

Question 33

How is devolving more powers reducing the north-south divide?

Answer 33

- Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own devolved government, and some powers are being devolved to local councils in England too - this allows them to use money on schemes they feel will best benefit the local community

Question 34

How is creating enterprise zones reducing the north-south divide?

Answer 34

- 50 zones across UK - companies get benefits for creating zones: reduced tax, financial benefits, improved infrastructure - encourage companies to locate in areas of high unemployment, bringing jobs and income which could help reduce north-south divide

Question 35

How is the Northern Power House reducing the north-south divide?

Answer 35

Attracting investment into the north and improving transport links between northern cities £70 million pounds on improving schools, improve broadband Critiqued for being more of a concept then a plan - not clear how money will be spent