Rural Economies
Economic growth is widely acknowledged as essential for national wealth and prosperity, and is a priority for political parties. Rural economies, employing millions and home to a higher proportion of small businesses, have potential for growth if barriers are removed.
03 Jun 2019
High street favourites forced to close stores
Boots could close up to 200 shops over the next two years, according to the Guardian. The health and beauty chain is reviewing its portfolio of nearly 2,500 shops as...
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03 Jun 2019
Councils spend millions on empty buildings
A report by the TaxPayers’ Alliance has found that councils around the UK have spent £74 million over the last two years maintaining more than 6,000 empty buildings, reports the...
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20 May 2019
Build a million homes on the Green Belt – Liz Truss MP
The Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liz Truss has called for one million homes to be built on Green Belt land around the country. Speaking to the Mail on Sunday,...
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20 May 2019
Scrapping HS2 would be economic disaster
Prominent business leaders and local politicians have written to the Treasury warning that failure to build the HS2 line would be a disaster for the Midlands and the north of...
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13 May 2019
Rural economies being ignored
The Chair of the Lords Rural Economy Committee Lord Foster argues on the website PoliticsHome.com that successive governments have ignored rural communities, in particular in terms of business needs. He...
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07 May 2019
The importance of rural connectivity
Writing in LocalGov.co.uk this week, TrueSpeed Communications CEO Evan Wienburg argues for the importance of robust digital connectivity. He notes that while ‘we’re living in a golden age for young...
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29 Apr 2019
Lords Rural Economy report backs rural strategy calls
The Lords Rural Economy report, published on Saturday, was covered in a range of publications, including: ITV, ISP Review, Christian Today and Farming UK. The report echoes RSN’s call for...
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29 Apr 2019
Threat to rural life – The Government must develop a rural strategy
The below article was written by Graham Biggs (Rural Services Network Chief Executive) in relation to the House of Lords Select Committee Report on the Rural Economy. This article was...
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29 Apr 2019
High street must change in order to survive
PoliticsHome.com reported on the challenges facing high streets around England. It noted recent announcements of job losses from House of Fraser, HMV, Debenhams and figures compiled by the consumer charity...
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25 Apr 2019
RSN Economic Profiling Service – February 2019
– Unemployment Claimant Flows as an Indicator of Economic Performance JSA claimant flows analysis (March 19) JSA claimants as percentage of working population analysis (December 18)
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