British regionalism and devolution. The challenges of state reform and European integration

Abstract:
In this volume various contributors provide a range of perspectives on the increasingly central issues of state reform, European integration and British regionalism in the 1990s. Using case material, they examine the effects of state reform and European integration on British regionalism and the devolution debate, and the nature of recent central responses to the re-emergence of regional and devolution issues, with a particular focus on the politics of the John Major government and the policies of parties then in opposition.

The main European focus is in Part III of the book 'Local government, European Union and British regionalism'. It looks at how local government, in its response to European integration and other pressures, and in its dealings with other sub-national agencies and central government, developed new forms of regional working based on networks and partnerships. Chapters consider the role of British local government in the EU, how the UK regions are managed and represented in Europe and sub-national partnerships and European integration, looking at the example of London and the South East.