Regional Development Policy Regenerating the South Wales

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Regional Development Policy Regenerating the
South Wales

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Slide 1 To describe variations in economic,
social and political development.
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Slide 2 To apply geographical theory to explain
these regional variations

• Myrdals cumulative causation model explains how
  the South of Wales became a core region. When
  development started in Ebbw Vale and Merthyr
  Tydfil, coal and iron ore works created a
  multiplier effect that lead to the development of
  a core region.
• One of the limitations of Myrdals model is that
  it cannot explain the decline of this core region
  back into a peripheral region. Once the resources
  had been exploited, the area simply declined back
  into the similar state any other peripheral
  region in Britain.
• Decline in this area is largely due to fact that
  it relied heavily on certain industries.
  Development was not even, spread out, or diverse
  enough to withstand the decline of these
  industries. The industries failed because cheaper
  alternative could be found overseas, and
  competition was simply too strong.

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Reasons for the RDP and the type of projects
being carried out.

• The RDP was needed within South Wales because
  since the fall of the industrial sector within
  England this area has been in a steady decline
  and is following the trend of locations in the
  Northern part of England following the North
  South divide.
• The Welsh Development Agency (WDA) was set-up in
  1976 to help regenerate the area and turn it from
  one of the UKs peripheral regions to one of the
  better places that follows the Southern trend of
  the divide.
• The WDA has so far spent money on landscaping old
  decrepit areas that have been spoilt by industry,
  such as Ebbw Vale (Slag) and Aberfan (Coal tips)
  this is a multi goal project in aim of creating
  more jobs and improving the environment as well
  as attracting more people and investment into the
  region. There were other projects such as the
  building of the Welsh industrial and Maritime
  museum in Cardiff and the Cardiff Bay project
  which aimed at improving transport and housing.

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• The WDA had 10 main advertising points that they
  used to bring new investment into and rejuvating
  the region.
• These ranged from the workforce and allocation of
  resources. To the countryside. To the regions
  infrastructure.
• Many and most of the WDAs projects have been
  successful which has led into.
• The beginning of this century Wales is already
  being seen as having a much more varied and
  widened economic base than in the past as well as
  having one of the fastest growing investment
  rates as a region than anywhere else in the UK at
  the time. There are now over 380 international
  companies that have set up bases in the region.
  Ranging from Ford to anything!!!

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Slide 4 To assess the impact of the development
policy

• There has been positive effects for the
  surrounding areas close to Wales as the high
  levels of investment have caused knock on effects
  that have been positive in many ways for the
  surrounding regions.
• The projects do have there limits in a way such
  as that if there is too much investment land will
  become scarce and so land values will rise as
  well as a lack of workers at a low labour cost,
  this then will defeat the WDAs objectives.
• The project was successful as it began the spread
  of the well-known industrial landscape of the
  Valleys. Pits crammed themselves into the narrow
  valley bottoms, vying for space with canals,
  housing and, later, railways and roads. Housing
  began to trail up the valley sides, line upon
  line of terraces pressed against the steep slops.
  
• The opening of the underground coal seams
  resulted in massive immigration as it bought
  workers from rural areas.

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• They have improved the areas by setting up new
  industrial estates at Tresforest, Merthyr Tydfil
  and Rhonnd.
• Two local areas of exceptionally high
  unemployment Swansea and Milford Haven Waterway
  were designated two of Britains 28 Enterprise
  Zones. The Swansea EZ includes 4 parks,
  including enterprise Leisure and Riverside.
  This helped increase the employment rate, improve
  standard of living, and bought in immigrants form
  rural areas. there have also been improvements
  in communications including the M4. the heads of
  the valleys road and the intercity rail link.
• According to Alex there have been no backwash
  effects!!! Alex said this!

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END By Abbas Nick and Alex