Local economic development — the changing public/private sector relationship

The paper examines changing approaches to local economic development in the period since 1974. Initially, it proposes an ‘orthodox’ model of local economic development policies which emphasised the provision of a better industrial fabric, and of financial assistance to small, inner city firms. It suggests three recent directions of change in emphasis from this orthodox model: help in the creation of new entrepreneurs; replacement of public sector by private sector action; local authority shareholding in local firms by use of Enterprise Boards. Each approach makes different assumptions about the public/private sector relationship, the last two involve a more explicitly ideological stance on this issue.