Blueprint for tackling UK regional inequalities launched

The UK2070 Commission, an independent inquiry into the UK's regional inequalities of which UCL is a major partner, has issued its final report, urging the Government to "think big, plan big and act at scale" to arrest economic decline and social division. The report, Make No Little Plans - Acting at Scale for a Fairer and Stronger Future , concludes that regional inequalities blight Britain and calls for an extra £200billion to be channelled to disadvantaged parts of the country over the next two decades. The commission was established by a partnership between UCL, the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, the University of Manchester and the University of Sheffield. One of the commissioners is Professor John Tomaney (The Bartlett School of Planning, UCL). Professor David Price, UCL Vice-Provost (Research), said: "This report is a timely and important publication, which sets out our shared responsibility to address the growing scale of spatial inequalities in the UK. "It also highlights the vital role that research plays in helping to understand these inequalities, as well as the potential for universities to contribute to the rebalancing of wealth and opportunity throughout the country." Professor Tomaney, Professor of Urban and Regional Planning at UCL, said: "The UK2070 Commission report presents a powerful analysis of the scale of regional inequalities in the UK and the urgent need to tackle these and makes practical suggestions about how this might be done." The Commission's final report outlines a 10-point programme for tackling inequality.