The North-South Divide in Great Britain: An Examination of the Evidence

Abstract

Recently there has been a renewed interest in spatial inequalities and the North-South divide. Evidence on the geographical dimensions of selected inequalities in Britain is examined. The existence of a North-South divide, alongside other divisions is established but the exact location of the divide is shown to vary from one indicator to another. The claims of those refuting the existence of a North-South divide are investigated. It is contended that acceptance of the existence of a North-South divide does not necessarily imply that the North is uniformly poor and the South uniformly prosperous. Rather, it is claimed that the concept of a North-South divide in Britain is valid despite the existence of local variations because of the concentration and more entrenched nature of deprivation in the North than in the South and evidence that persons with otherwise similar characteristics fare better in the South than in the North. In the final section possible ways of breaking down and overcoming the North-South divide are reviewed.