United kingdom Flashcards
Changing economic world (39 cards)
How did the UK’s industrial sector change from the 20th century
The primary sector e.g mining, agriculture, fishing declined due to increase in machinery
Manufacturing sector decreased due to competition from abroad
Service sector increased due to expansion in public services and finance
3 main causes of economic change in UK
Deindustrialisation
Globalisation
Government policies
Deindustrialisation
The decline in heavy industries which produced raw materials e.g coal to manufacture iron or steel for shipbuilding
Northeast England heavily depended on manufacturing.
The closure of coal mines in 1970s left unemployment, low income in these regions
Globalisation
Globalization is a process by which businesses or other organizations develop international influence or start operating on an international scale. It is driven by advances in communications, technology, and trade groups like the EU, has reshaped the global economy with the rise of TNCs and rapid growth in Asia. The UK now focuses on the service sector (finance, research, media, education) and the quaternary sector. Government policies have adapted through:
How global policies have changed UK economy
- 1945-79: State-run industries (e.g., British Steel Corporation) supported declining heavy industries but faced closures and unrest due to outdated practices.
- 1979-2010: Privatization and investment transformed industrial areas (e.g., London Docklands into Canary Wharf) as the service sector grew.
- 2010 onwards: Rebalancing the economy via high-tech manufacturing (e.g., aerospace, computer engineering), infrastructure investment (e.g., Crossrail, HS2), and support for small businesses.
How is the UK post industrial economy characterised
Shift into technology based services
How technology effects peoples lives
Computers store lots of information quickly
Mobile devices mean any information can be accessed at any time
Communication using satellite
Uk is recognised as one of the top IT countries in the world attracting business and investment
Internet allows people to work from home/be self employed
Uk is home to over 1.3million people who work in the IT sector
More specialist manufacturing due to new technology (efficient)
Describe the UK’s service industry
Largest UK sector
Financial sector employs over 2 million people + contributes to 10% of UK’s GDP
Effect of research on economy
It employs over 60,000 highly educated people and contributes
£3 billion to the UK economy.
◦ Much research is linked to UK universities such as Oxford, Cambridge and Manchester and involves the biomedical, computer, environmental and aerospace sectors.
◦ Research is conducted by both government bodies (such as the National Health Service, the Ministry of Defence and the Environment Agency) and private organisations, such as pharmaceutical companies.
define growth corridor
area of country where economy is growing, often along a major transport route linking two or more cities
how does the M4 corridor contribute to the economy
The M4 corridor, from London to Bristol, has become home to hi-tech industry over the past thirty years. Many well-known companies. like Microsoft, Sony and Vodaphone, are based there, usually in modern, out-of-town business parks. It is estimated that the M4 corridor produces 8% of the UK’s economic output, as much as Manchester and Birmingham combined.
Cambridge science park benefits
- Uk’s major hub for hi tech industry
-1500 bio technology companies
-7250 employees - 80km North of London + along M11
- Excellent health facilities e.g Adenbrooke hospital + investment in local transport
- Other jobs on site e.g security + cafe
-£46 million investment in new biomedical centre next to science park - 12 biomedical companies involved in therapeuticcs - drugs + immunatherapies
- Abcam company sells 100,000 antibody products over 140 counties
Cambridge science park disadvantages
House prices are rising due to rising demand to live in area
Cambridge is increasingly congested with traffic and pedestrians.
Rail and road links can’t cope with demands fast enough
What are business parks
Business parks usually involve a group of small businesses on a singie plot ofland. There are hundreds of business parks in the UK, usually located on the edges of towns and cities where land is relatively cheap and there are good road communications.
They can involve retailing and small-scale manufacturing, as well as research and development. In supplying goods and services, they often benefit from close association with each other (e.g. a printing company providing print materials for other companies in the business park).
Impacts of industry on environement
Industrial processes often release chemicals in the air - sulphur/nitrogen oxides - health issues
Factories/mines/quarries destroy physical landscape - habitats
Transporting raw materials produces lots of air pollution - CO2, NO2
Industrial processes use lots of energy = climate change
Waste often goes to landfill = release toxins into soil + methane
Local water systems polluted with toxins
Example of car industry can be more sustainable
Each year in Uk the car industry manufactures over 1.5 million cars:
Nissan car plant, Sunderland
Nissan employs 7,000 people in its car plant at Sunderland. Opened in 1986, it produces over 500,000 cars each year. It is highly efficient in the following ways:
◦ The car plant obtains 7 per cent of its energy from wind turbines.
◦ New car models are designed to be much more fuel efficient and have tighter restrictions on exhaust gas emissions.
◦ The Nissan Leaf is an electric car. Other cars are hybrids’, using a mixture of petrol and electricity.
◦ Cars are designed using materials that can be readily recycled, reducing waste going to landfill sites.
Example of more sustainable quarrying
Torr Quarry is a limestone quarry in the south of Bristol. It employs over 100 people and contributes around £15 million to the economy each year. Limestone chippings produced at the quarry are mostly used in the construction industry. The quarry is environmentally sustainable in the following ways:
◦ Chippings are transported by rail rather than road to minimise the environmental impact.
◦ There is regular monitoring of water quality, airborne emissions and noise.
◦ Some 80 hectares of the site have already been restored, with grass and trees.
◦ Future restoration will include the creation of lakes for wildlife and recreation.
Example area for social + economic changes in area of population growth
South Cambridgeshire
- expected population rise from 150,000 to 175 000 by 2026
Example area for social and economic changes in area of population decline
Outer Hebrides - north west scotland
- 50% populationd ecline since 1901
Current population of 27,000 most of whom live on island of Lewis
Social changes in south cambridgeshire
Rising house prices (reflecting greater demand) and modern developments in villages can cause tensions with local people.
◦ If a village has a high proportion of commuters it can become very dead during the day and lose its sense of community and identity.
◦ Car-owning commuters do not need public transpor and services may be reduced, affecting local people.
◦ Resentment may be felt towards migrants in the community.
Economic changes in south cambridgeshire
Lack of affordable housing for local people.
◦ Some shops may be forced to close if commuters do not use their local village shops. Others may thrive if they offer services in the evenings and at weekends.
◦ Sale of agricultural land can reduce farm employment, which may lead to some local unemployment.
◦ Fuel prices - and shop prices - tend to be higher than elsewhere in the area due to high demand.
◦ The influx of poor migrants can put economic pressures on social services.
social changes in outer hebrides scotland
The out-migration of young people has resulted in an increasingly ageing population.
◦ An ageing population will require increasing amounts of care, which will have social and economic impacts.
◦ Fewer people of working age in the area could result in further decline in farming and fishing.
◦ Fewer children could result in school closures.
economic changes in outer hebrides scotalnd
Maintaining ferries and other services is costly - some post offices have had to close.
◦ Traditional fishing for prawns and lobsters has declined, with just a few boats left.
◦ Shellfish production has increased, mostly involving foreign boats.
◦ Tourism has become an important economic activity but the infrastructure is struggling to cope with the number of visitors.
Uk road development
In 2014, the government launched a £15 billion
‘Road Improvement Strategy’ to improve road condition and capacity:
◦ Many stretches of busy motorway are being converted into ‘smart motorways’, enabling traffic flow to be controlled to reduce congestion.
◦ Over 100 new road schemes by 2020.
◦ Over 1,600 kilometres of new lanes will be added to busy motorways and major roads such as the heavily congested A303 in southwest England