UK Economy Research Articles

Recognising and Responding to Suicide-Risk Factors in Primary Care: A Scoping Review

The cost of one suicide is estimated to be £1.67 million (2 million euros) to the UK economy. Most people who die by suicide have seen a primary care practitioner (PCP) in the year prior to death. PCPs could aim to intervene before suicidal behaviours arise by addressing suicide-risk factors noted in primary care consultations, thereby preventing suicide and promoting health and wellbeing. This study aimed to conduct a rapid, systematic scoping review to explore how PCPs can effectively recognise and respond to suicide-risk factors. MedLine, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Web of Science and Cochrane Library databases were searched for three key concepts: suicide prevention, mental health and primary care. Two reviewers screened titles, abstracts and full papers independently against the eligibility criteria. Data synthesis was achieved by extracting and analysing study characteristics and findings. Forty-two studies met the eligibility criteria and were cited in this scoping review. Studies were published between 1990 and 2020 and were of good methodological quality. Six themes regarding suicide risk assessment in primary care were identified: Primary care consultations prior to suicide; Reasons for non-disclosure of suicidal behaviour; Screening for suicide risk; Training for primary care staff; Use of language by primary care staff; and, Difference in referral pathways from general practitioners or primary care practitioners. This review focused on better recognition and response to specific suicide-risk factors more widely such as poor mental health, substance misuse and long-term physical health conditions. Primary care is well placed to address the range of suicide-risk factors including biological, physical-health, psychological and socio-economic factors and therefore these findings could inform the development of person-centred approaches to be used in primary care.

The Military Expenditure – Economic Growth Nexus Revisited: Evidence from the United Kingdom

Abstract The relationship between government defence expenditure and economic growth is a debated topic. This study uses UK data for the period of 1960–2012 and applies two of the most prevailing theories used within the literature, the ‘Feder-Ram’ and the ‘augmented Solow’ models, to assess this question. We utilise traditional model specifications, alongside extensively altered versions of both models, enabling a comprehensive comparison between them. The alterations to the models include re-evaluating how core variables are expressed, inclusion of measures of conflict, the impact of recession, etc. The results show that the augmented Solow model outperforms the Feder-Ram model, and we provide some explanations for this result. In addition, our results suggest that military expenditure has a positive effect on economic growth within the UK, implying that the decision to reduce defence spending may have been detrimental to the UK economy.

Die ökonomische Bedeutung des Brexits

Abstract On January 1, 2021, Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) left the EU single market and customs union. Although the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the UK and EU ensures that no tariffs or quotas are to be imposed on traded goods, there are still numerous non-tariff barriers to trade. These added a significant layer of trade complexity that did not exist pre-Brexit and it was thus inevitable that there would be ramifications for the UK economy. Carefully judging this impact is a complicated task, however, as a counterfactual must be used: how would the UK economy have fared if it were still in the EU? This difficulty is exacerbated by two other highly significant events affecting the UK economy at the same time, namely the Covid-19 pandemic and the Ukraine war. Disentangling Brexit from all this and deciding what is and is not a Brexit effect makes the evaluation thereof difficult. Nevertheless, there have been a number of studies published that have attempted such a task. UK-EU trade is widely judged to have taken a significant hit due to Brexit, with smaller firms producing a limited range of products being affected the most. The consensus view is that Brexit has also had a negative impact on UK investment levels and GDP, with the latter judged to be approximately 6 % lower than if the UK had stayed in the EU. In the long run, the UK economy may benefit from more skilled foreign labour due to the post-Brexit immigration rules. Nevertheless, any positive effects are likely to be outweighed by the non-tariff barriers in UK-EU trade, acting as a deterrent in exploiting comparative advantage and widely seen as being the main drag on UK productivity.

Die wirtschaftlichen Folgen des Brexits

Abstract The United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union (Brexit) has negatively affected its economic performance in the years after the 2016 referendum. A growing literature on the short-run effects of Brexit has documented that UK economic activity has been affected through a mix of uncertainty and anticipation effects. This literature has shown that UK GDP and investment have been negatively affected and inflation has increased as a consequence of the outcome of the referendum. Comparatively little is known about the effects of the UK’s subsequent exit from the single market and customs union in January 2021, but existing research has documented negative effects on UK trade, in particular UK imports from the European Union. But whether this will lead to subsequent further declines in UK GDP remains to be seen and will also depend on future EU-UK efforts to reduce the trade barriers created by the trade and cooperation agreement (TCA) of 2020.

Exploring the barriers to innovation adoption in the UK construction industry

AbstractThe UK construction industry is an important aspect of the UK economy; however, it is struggling to keep pace with wider economic growth and if it does not change it will not be able to keep up with demand. There is a gap between academia and practice, and little understanding of how to successfully innovate within the industry. Following a workshop with 25 construction industry professionals on the barriers to innovation in the construction industry, key themes were developed through thematic analysis including regulation, fragmentation and constant change.

Research on Political and Economic Trends before and after Brexit: Take the Position of the Pound and Changes in the Exchange Rate as an Example

As a former overlord of the world, Britain has always played an important role in Europe. In the process of multi-polarization, the European Union has become the general trend and gradually moved towards a whole. Since the 21st century, European integration has entered a period of decline. Due to the historical tradition of independence and the practical reasons for political and economic differences, Britain chose to leave the European Union, which further aggravated the crisis of the European Union. It is of great significance to deeply study the reasons for Brexit, the changing trend of Britain’s political and economic status, and the political and economic impact of Brexit on Britain, the European Union, and even the world. Therefore, this paper will study the economic trend of the UK before and after Brexit from the perspective of the status of the pound and the change in the exchange rate and analyze the world status and political influence of the UK before and after Brexit from the perspective of international relations. At the same time, this paper will use literature analysis to search and read relevant materials and literature, use economic newspapers and other specific data to support personal views, analyze economic changes, and then draw research results. In the future, the British economy will face greater challenges, and in the political aspect, it is likely to further move closer to the United States and strengthen economic and security cooperation with English-speaking countries such as North America, Australia, and South Asia.

Occupational prestige and occupational social value in the United Kingdom: New indices for the modern British economy

Sociological research has long been interested in occupational evaluation. However, occupational research remains hampered by conceptual ambiguity and methodological problems. To address these issues, we present new indices of occupational prestige and occupational social value for 576 occupation titles aligned with the ILO International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO-08). A shorter core list with 130 occupation titles – one per ISCO-08 minor group – is also provided. Based on comprehensive and recent evidence from 2429 respondents, we carve out the evaluative landscape of occupations in the United Kingdom. We show how occupational prestige and occupational social value are correlated but distinct. A clear hierarchy appears, with highly educated occupations at the top and stigmatised or illicit occupations at the bottom. The study thus contributes to social stratification research and encourages reuse of the scores in future occupational research.

Nominal wage patterns, monopsony, and labour market power in early modern England

AbstractRecords of long‐eighteenth‐century English wage rates exhibit almost absolute nominal rigidity over many decades, alongside significant dispersion between the wages paid by different organizations for the same type of work in the same location. These features of preindustrial wages have been obscured by data aggregation and the construction of real wage series, which introduce variation. In this paper, we argue that the standard explanations for wage rigidity in economic history are insufficient. We show econometric evidence for monopsony power in one major organization and argue that the main historical wage series are also affected by employer power. Eighteenth‐century England had an imperfectly competitive labour market with large frictions. This gave large organizations the power to set wage policies. We discuss the implications for the eighteenth‐century British economy and research into long‐run wages more generally.

WORKING CAPITAL MANAGEMENT AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE: EVIDENCE FROM ALTERNATIVE ENERGY FIRMS IN THE UK

Purpose: This study examined the impact of working capital management on the financial performance of alternative energy in the UK from 2015 to 2022. The proxy used includes receivable turnover, payable turnover, inventory turnover and return on asset. The study employs an ex-post facto research design using panel data from the sampled firms' annual reports. Methodology: The panel data were analysed using descriptive statistics, correlation matrix and panel regression analysis. The Hausman specification test showed that the fixed effect was more appropriate. Findings and Conclusion: The findings show that receivable turnover has a significant positive impact on the return on assets of the alternative firm in the UK. In addition, payable turnover has a significant negative effect on return on assets, while the findings on inventory turnover have an insignificant impact on return on assets. These findings imply that working capital management significantly affects the financial performance of alternative energy firms in the UK. Based on the conclusion, the study recommends that oil and gas firms increase their net cash flow from operating activities to increase their financial performance. Originality/Value: Globally, it is acknowledged that many companies fail due to poor working capital management. This study contributes to knowledge by examining the effect of working capital management on the financial performance of alternative energy firms in line with sustainable development goals in achieving a sustainable UK economy. This has not been previously studied.

The UK’s post-study work visa: Abolition and reinstatement of a degree mobility incentive

This paper examines the 2012 abolition of the Post-Study Work visa for international students in English and Welsh Universities and its subsequent re-establishment in 2021. A policy cycle analysis was performed of the phases of agenda setting, formulation, implementation, and evaluation. This revealed that the UK government abolished the PSW visa in 2012 because of national security concerns and perceived public opposition to immigration, but minimised the role of higher education institutions and failed to consider economic and cultural drivers when setting the policy agenda. The impact of the subsequent top-down approach to implementation led to a range of negative outcomes for HEIs and their contribution to the UK economy. Subsequently, bottom-up pressure led to the UK government re-establishing the PSW visa for economic reasons, political reasons (Brexit), and in response to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chen Han-seng, the Institute of Pacific Relations, and Changing Ideas About the Chinese Rural Economy

Abstract The famous sociologist, economist, and historian Chen Han-seng was the founder of the Agrarian China Research Association, publishing influential studies on industrial production and class relations, and their effect on peasant living standards. Through the Institute of Pacific Relations (ipr), Chen engaged in a theoretical dialogue with liberal intellectuals and responded to American, British, and Soviet theories about Chinese society and rural China. Unlike American ipr scholars, such as John Lossing Buck, whose agenda was to investigate the consumer power of Chinese peasants, Chen’s study of living standards emphasized their production capability and the role usury played in it. And unlike the ipr British economists, such as R. H. Tawney, who were generally optimistic about Chinese rural industry, Chen’s research proved Chinese industrialization to be unsustainable and to lower peasant living standards. In reaction to these American and British scholars, Chen tactically changed his concept of “living standards” and developed his own theory of Chinese rural economics.

Immigration and the Brexit Catastrophe: Empire, Citizenship and Ignorance

AbstractThe article examines British immigration policy in the run‐up to and after Brexit. It explains how the Conservatives presided over policies that demonised, demeaned and deported black Britons whilst admitting hundreds of thousands of immigrants they promised to keep out. This happened because of (a) how early postwar nationality policy interacted with subsequent immigration policy and (b) elite ignorance. The ensuing Windrush scandal resulted from the interaction of the British Nationality Act 1948 with Home Secretary Theresa May's hostile environment policy. Meanwhile, since Brexit, net immigration figures have doubled. This is because Conservative Home Secretary Priti Patel ended the free movement of EU citizens and authored a new immigration policy that utterly failed to consider the British economy's dependence on low‐skilled labour. The outcomes reflect profoundly on the British economy, on the history of nationality law, and on immigration policy.

马克思两种社会必要劳动时间的再思考

Marx proposed the concept of “socially necessary labor time” in Das Kapital, which promoted and leaped the concept of “necessary labor time” in classical British political economy. The issue of Marx’s two types of socially necessary labor time has been debated in China for decades, with various opinions and incongruities. However, a thorough analysis of Marx’s two types of socially necessary labor time reveals that they are a reflection of the dialectical unity between productive forces and production relations under specific historical conditions in capitalist society, based on the materialist view of history. Together, they determine the value of commodities. Today, nearly 150 years have passed since Marx wrote Das Kapital. With the globalization of the world economy, social forms have undergone a transformation from a “production society” to a “consumption society”. Environmental pollution is becoming increasingly serious, and the necessary labor time in society has also generated new influencing factors, which require further analysis and research.

Philosophical Critique and Decoding Path of Rosa's New Alienation

The theory of alienation occupies a very important position in Marx's theoretical system. In the Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844, Marx criticizes classical political economy in England starting from alienated labor and puts forward four aspects of alienated labor. The Frankfurt School further developed Marx's theory of alienation and conducted comprehensive investigations on technological alienation, cultural alienation, consumer alienation, and other aspects of modern society's culture, politics, and art. In the new turn of late modern society, the fourth generation Frankfurt School scholar Hartmut Rosa, starting from time analysis, analyzes the growth logic and dynamic stability of modern society's overall crisis through the theory of social acceleration critique, and proposes the social pathologies of "acceleration" and the solution of "resonance", attempting to achieve a better life for people in the present era through the adaptive mode of resonance theory. Based on Hartmut Rosa's works and related research, this article explores the theoretical origins of Rosa's theory of social acceleration critique, the historical background and ideological elements, elaborates on Rosa's analysis of the phenomenon of social acceleration, the new forms of alienation under the background of accelerated society, and the resonant solutions to the problem of new alienation. Finally, this article examines the theoretical value and shortcomings of his theory.

Consuming Royalty

Consuming Royalty

The Royal Treatment

The Royal Treatment

Where Have All the ‘Exiters’ Gone? Contextualising the Concept of Hard Euroscepticism

AbstractThe article analyses the impact of Brexit on hard Eurosceptic discourses in the Visegrád Group countries from 2015 to 2023. As the negative implications of Brexit for the UK economy became clear, many hard Eurosceptics softened their rhetoric, using the referendum as a proxy for a ‘hard’ exit. Whilst the classical soft–hard typology remains dominant amongst scholars in the study of Euroscepticism, the case of Brexit shows that long‐term principled opposition to the European Union (EU) can hide behind equivocal rhetoric. The article suggests studying the changing tactics of Eurosceptics by matching current EU and domestic contexts together with the long‐term points of departure of hard Eurosceptics.

Positive tipping points for the sustainable growth of bivalve shellfish mariculture in England and Wales

Shellfish mariculture, the farming of marine bivalve shellfish, is a highly sustainable form of food production, which contributes significantly to the rural, coastal economies of England and Wales, and has considerable potential for growth. To unlock this potential, we explored the application of the positive tipping points (PTP) framework in an invited stakeholder workshop comprising key policy makers, regulators, industry representatives and academic researchers. Stakeholders mapped environmental and socio-economic factors constraining shellfish mariculture and identified key opportunities (leverage points) for positive intervention. The workshop focused on five case studies from southwest England addressing key constraints identified for the shellfish industry, including “licencing”, “spatial planning” and/or “classification” of shellfish sites and cultured species. These case studies presented new data on the effectiveness of a range of interventions: i) catchment scale, and ii) nature-based, solutions for water quality management in the Exe estuary; iii) risk-based methods for assuring shellfish quality/safety in the Camel estuary; iv) evidence gathering on ecosystem services (habitat provisioning) by shellfish mariculture in Lyme Bay and, v) policy developments on licencing of Pacific oysters in England. Stakeholders highlighted opportunities for new guidance, innovative tools and technology to aid environmental monitoring, regulation and quality assurance for shellfish mariculture and for tradeable ecosystem services beyond food production (including nutrient regulation, coastal protection and habitat provisioning). These and other interventions identified by stakeholders (including product diversification and market development) were then prioritised and sequenced for optimal implementation. Actions, actors and enabling conditions were identified using the PTP framework to realise prioritised opportunities.

Group-based positive psychotherapy for people living with acquired brain injury: a protocol for a feasibility study

BackgroundAcquired brain injury (ABI) and other chronic conditions are placing unprecedented pressure on healthcare systems. In the UK, 1.3 million people live with the effects of brain injury, costing the UK economy approximately £15 billion per year. As a result, there is an urgent need to adapt existing healthcare delivery to meet increasing current and future demands. A focus on wellbeing may provide an innovative opportunity to reduce the pressure on healthcare services while also supporting patients to live more meaningful lives. The overarching aims of the study are as follows: (1) evaluate the feasibility of conducting a positive psychotherapy intervention for individuals with ABI and (2) ascertain under what conditions such an intervention would merit a fully powered randomised controlled trial (RCT) compared to a standard control group (TAU).Methods and analysisA randomised, two-arm feasibility trial involving allocation of patients to either a treatment group (positive psychotherapy) or control group (treatment as usual) group, according to a 1:1 ratio. A total of 60 participants at three sites will be recruited including 20 participants at each site. Assessments will be conducted at baseline, on completion of the 8-week intervention and 3 months following completion. These will include a range of questionnaire-based measures, psychophysiology and qualitative outcomes focusing on feasibility outcomes and participant experience. This study has been approved by the Wales Research Ethics Committee (IRAS project ID: 271,251, REC reference: 19/WA/0336).DiscussionThis study will be the first to examine the feasibility of an innovative, holistic positive psychotherapy intervention for people living with ABI, focused on individual, collective and planetary wellbeing, and will enable us to determine whether to proceed to a full randomised controlled trial.Trial registrationISRCTN12690685, registered 11th November 2020.

The Death of Queen Elizabeth, the Death of the British Empire

The life of Elizabeth Windsor famously kmown by her title Queen Elizabeth the second, is one of mixed realites she is the longest reigning British Monarch in history having set on the throne for 70 years. The reign of Elizabeth was born from the greatest times of the British Empire with many colonies and a great reputation of the empire after the defeat of the Germans in World war 2. Queen Elizabeth has been credited in overseeing the end of colonisation from the British empire by many African states who were under British colonial rule. She facilitated for negotiations in some cases between liberation war movements and the colonial governments on peaceful ways of transfering power. Her Queen`s government even went on to sanction Ian Smith regime in Rhodesia when it declared independence from Britain, the sanctions were as a result that her majesty`s government would only accept independence if it was given to the majority black africans of Rhodesia. The British economy under her rule had prospered beyond unimaginable dought with the British pound being the most powerful currency, the attractiveness of the pound attracted great minds from across the globe which helped improve the British economy and advanced its technological base. The common wealth of nations an organisation the Queen championed has had success in cooperation between Britain its former colonies and other countries that were not British colonies have since joined the organisation because of its successes. This paper seeks to show how the British economy, social base and its political prowess has suffered from the days that the Queen became sick to her subsequent death and the aftermath. Policies like the Brexit that was carried out during her old age and its impact of Britain will be visited upon in this article, the Irish referendum, the removal of the British Mornach as heard of state by carribean nations that belonged to the British realm. The paper seeks to show how Elizabeth Windsor was the glue that bonded British modern society and the survival of the British monarch without her is under threat.In her life Queen Elizabeth worked with 15 British Prime Ministers from diverse parties sharing diferent ideologies this showed her to be a democratic monarch. This paper will expand on the front of the death of monarchs and empires in the modern era and Elizabeth Winsdor being the last great monarch.