This book discusses national development planning in the context of a globalized world economy. National economic development planning, the process of defining strategic economic objectives for a country and designing policies and institutional frameworks to attain them, was popular in many countries in the 1960s and 1970s. Over time it lost its appeal. More recently, with globalization accelerating and economic competition increasing, it is making a comeback in different countries under different forms. National planning in this new era is different than the earlier quantitative planning approaches. It employs different tools, such as strategic visions and action plans, revived forms of physical infrastructure planning, industrial policy, and cluster policy. Built on the research of international scholars with firsthand knowledge of the countries in question, this volume presents and evaluates current national planning strategies and policy worldwide. It will be of interest to both academicians who study and teach globalization and development as well as policy makers who may use it as a reference as they contemplate their own strategies.

The changes will be economically disruptive because they increase uncertainty in property markets, weaken the contractual nature of land development, and provide more opportunities for planners and the general public to delay development. The result will be more volatile property markets, reduced supply and higher prices and rents.

" ... I have also tried to highlight the constructive roles played by Russia during and after the Second World War in East Europe. In the socialist block of countries there were efforts to address the peoples' basic needs like food, shelter, education and health. But they seriously lagged in catering to other consumer goods and luxury items for which the people had great craving. The closed door functioning of the communist parties in East Europe as per the dictates of Soviet Russia had alienated the parties from the people. During spring and summer I travelled to the extreme Western Europe (London and Paris) and the central/east Europe comprising Italy, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Germany and Hungary. I had rich experience of travelling by train, car as well as by hitchhiking. During my entire stay, I met many colourful, jovial and compassionate personalities in different fields and had entered into very lively discussions about man-woman relationships including love, sex, marriage and divorce, women's position in the east and west, definition of character and virtuousness, religion and other socio-political developments. The cultural and social differences between Europe and India also featured. An attempt has also been made to look into the causes of the recent disintegration of Yugoslavia in the early nineties of the last century."--

Democratic Economic Planning presents a concrete proposal for how to organize, carry out, and integrate comprehensive annual economic planning, investment planning, and long-run development planning so as to maximize popular participation, distribute the burdens and benefits of economic activity fairly, achieve environmental sustainability, and use scarce productive resources efficiently. The participatory planning procedures proposed provide workers in self-managed councils and consumers in neighbourhood councils with autonomy over their own activities while ensuring that they use scarce productive resources in socially responsible ways without subjecting them to competitive market forces. Certain mathematical and economic skills are required to fully understand and evaluate the planning procedures discussed and evaluated in technical sections in a number of chapters. These sections are necessary to advance the theory of democratic planning, and should be of primary interest to readers who have those skills. However, the book is written so that the main argument can be followed without fully digesting the more technical sections. Democratic Economic Planning is written for dreamers who are disenamored with the economics of competition and greed want to know how a system of equitable cooperation can be organized; and also for sceptics who demand "hard proof" that an economy without markets and private enterprise is possible.

Don Lavoie argues that the radical Left's enthusiasm for planning has been a tragic mistake and that progressive social change requires the abandonment of this traditional view. Lavoie argues that planning—whether Marxism, economic democracy, or industrial policy—can only disrupt social and economic coordination. He challenges both radicals and their critics to begin reformulating our whole notion of progressive economic change without reliance on central planning. National Economic Planning: What is Left? will challenge thinkers and policymakers of every political persuasion.

With contributions from leading academics and practitioners, Strategic Planning for Regional Development in the UK is the most up-to-date treatment of a fast-changing subject. The book discusses: The evolution of regional planning in the UK and the strategic thinking involved The spatial implications of regional economic development policies The methods and techniques needed for the implementation of strategic planning for regional development How strategic planning for regional development is currently put into practice in three UK regions with different priorities. Strategic Planning for Regional Development in the UK is essential reading for students and academics working within strategic and regional planning and provides policy makers and practitioners with a comprehensive and thought provoking introduction to this critically important emerging field.

Originally published in 1970. During the times of planned population movements and new towns, with a growing interest in specifically regional policies by government, this book considers the problems of development within regions. It presents research on the facts and trends of employment generated by the regional economy and its relationship with the size and socio-economic character of local workforce, using the example of the West Midlands as testing ground for policy. The authors come from the viewpoint of needing to develop understanding of population, housing, employment and communications – the way our regional economy and society worked, before organised de-centralisation could be planned appropriately. Within the field of economic planning they ask what analysis of the information available tell us about development possibilities within a region. The book looks at trends in employment growth, the character and distribution of manufacturing industries and service industries and the locational consequences, to build a picture of the regional economic system. It then considers supply and demand and measures the ways towns vary in detailed case studies.