Brexit and Global Wealth Chains

One vision of a post Brexit Britain is of a political economy sustained by highly flexible labour markets, light touch regulation, and a hyper competitive low-tax regime. This article focuses on the tax element, evaluating the prospects of this vision’s realization on the basis of the attributes of the British political economy, the substance of the Britain’s new found freedoms and the forces at play in the European and international regulatory environment. Britain is seeking a smooth transition via a strategy of upgrading and expanding national position in global wealth chains (GWCs). Occupying space in GWCs requires a series of careful balancing acts between making a tax offer attractive to mobile capital and maintaining revenue, designing a low-tax regime and staying within the boundaries of accepted practice established by multilateral rules and norms, and between multiple, often conflicting, goals that Britain must simultaneously pursue as it leaves the European Union. With hard Brexit, Britain will pursue this vision, but these balances are likely to prove illusive.     

Europe and the World after Brexit

The aftermath of Brexit has been contrary to prediction and even to the fears widely voiced on the morning the vote came in. What will happen next depends first on British politics, second on EU law, third on the rapidly evolving geometry of Europe, and finally, on the actions of external powers. The prospect is not good; reform through democratization of the European project remains one frail hope for a better outcome.     

Brexit and the Future of the Left

The referendum on British membership in the European Union divided not only the society in the UK but also the left both in Britain and all over the continent. This division however is produced not so much by this specific debate but by a deeper problem of the left capitulating ideologically and accepting neoliberalism as something objectively inevitable (even without publically recognizing it), replacing class struggle by ‘progressive’ cultural values that themselves form an essential part of the new capitalist hegemony. Leftist intelligentsia with its cultural critique of capitalism is no alternative to the current system, rather it is one of its pillars. While class division was very visible in the Brexit vote, with the working class and poor massively voting for ‘Leave’, most of the left either sided with the establishment or was wavering. Thus the success of the ‘Leave’ vote can be claimed by nationalists. Even after this political disaster instead criticizing itself leftist intelligentsia is blaming the people for being provincial and not accepting their progressive European values. However it was exactly the mass of common people in England who by voting for ‘Leave’ contributed to the formation of the new European agenda. Overcoming and unmaking bureaucratic, authoritarian, and neoliberal EU institutions is the only way to progress towards the making of a new democratic Europe.     

New Maps,New Questions: Global Cities Beyond the Advanced Producer and Financial Services Sector

This article broadens the discussion of cities as strategic sites in which global activities are organized. It deploys methodology commonly used to study the distribution and disproportionate concentration of advanced producer and financial services firms in order to study the office distribution of global nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and global energy corporations. It then compares the distribution of those offices to that of advanced producer and financial services firms, using data from the global and World Cities Research Network, further discovering what cities are strategic sites in all three networks, in any combination of two networks, and in only one network. Attending to the convergence and divergence of such networks opens a door to the study of network logic—the underlying dynamics of network functioning—instead of limiting the study to network structure or composition while also permitting a multi-sectoral measurement of globality.

Este artículo amplía la discusión de ciudades como lugares estratégicos en las que se organizan actividades globales. Despliega una metodología comúnmente usada para estudiar la distribución y la concentración desproporcionada de productores avanzados y firmas de servicios financieros, con el objeto de estudiar la distribución de oficinas de las organizaciones no gubernamentales (ONGs) y las corporaciones de energía globales. Luego compara la distribución de aquellas oficinas para los productores avanzados y para las firmas de servicios financieros, usando los datos de la Red de Investigación de las Ciudades Mundiales y Globales, para luego descubrir qué ciudades son lugares estratégicos en todas las tres redes, en cualquier combinación de dos redes y en solo una red. Prestando atención a la convergencia y divergencia de tales redes, se abre una puerta al estudio de la lógica de las redes—la dinámica subyacente de la función de las redes—en vez de limitar el estudio de la estructura de la red o la composición, permitiendo también una medida multisectorial de globalidad.

本文扩展了对城市的讨论,它们是组织全球行动的战略要地。本文运用了通常研究高级生产者和金融服务公司的分布及其不成比例集中问题的方法学,以期对全球非政府组织和全球能源公司的办公分布进行研究。然后,它运用来自“全球与世界城市研究网络”的数据,通过进一步讨论何种城市属于全部三种网络的、任何两种网络结合的、以及仅一种网络中的战略要地,对其机构分布和高级生产者及金融服务公司的分布进行对比。对这些网络的聚集和离散的注意为网络逻辑——网络运作的潜在动力——的研究提供了机会,而不是在允许对全球性进行多领域量度的同时又局限于研究网络的结构或组成。

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Brexit and its Consequences

In this brief essay, I argue that the ‘Brexit’ vote is but the latest manifestation of popular dissatisfaction with the utopian ideal of autonomous markets beyond the reach of regulatory democracy. Brexit represented the collective, if (to my mind) often misguided, efforts of those ‘left behind’ in Britain to protect themselves from the predatory nature of market fundamentalism. In a Polanyian sense, it is a form of social self-protection from self-regulating markets in money, trade and labour.     

Understanding the social and cultural bases of Brexit*

We use data from a large scale and nationally representative survey to evaluate two narratives about the social bases of Brexit. The first narrative sees Brexit as a revolt of the economically left-behinds. The second narrative attributes Brexit to the resurgence of an English nationalism. There is some, albeit not always consistent, evidence that people in relative poverty or those living in areas that have seen greater Chinese import penetration are slightly more pro-Leave. People living in economically deprived neighborhoods are not more pro-Brexit. Using the Weberian class–status distinction, it is social status, not social class, which stratifies Brexit support. Individuals for whom being British is important are more pro-Leave. But those who see themselves as British rather than English, and those reporting omnivorous cultural consumption are less supportive of Brexit. Overall, there is empirical support for both narratives. But the weight of the evidence suggests a strong cultural dimension in Brexit support.     

Trade and the Gains from Diversity: Why Economists Failed to Predict the Consequences of Brexit

In this brief article I explain why the expectation amongst economists that Brexit means Britain will experience significant economic losses, thanks to the reversal of the gains from specialisation, is incorrect. The background assumptions regarding comparative advantage are false and cannot inform real-world situations. However, this is not the same as to suggest Britain as a post-Brexit country will follow successful trade policies.     

Age and the Environment: The Global Movement Towards Age-Friendly Cities and Communities

Populations around the world are rapidly ageing, with some of the fastest change occurring in less-developed countries. One of the key determinants of the capabilities of older people, and whether they can achieve the things that are meaningful to them, is the environment in which they live. There is growing interest globally on how to foster “age-friendly” environments, and the World Health Organization's Global Network of Age-Friendly Cities and Communities now includes over 250 member cities with responsibility for around 100 million people. This paper outlines the background to the Network and describes some innovative strategies being adopted by members in different parts of the world.     

Belonging,believing, behaving,and Brexit: Channels of religiosity and religious identity in support for leaving the European Union*

Having an Anglican affiliation is known to be associated with support for leaving the European Union (EU) in Britain. Religiosity, conceived as strength of religious attachment, has received comparatively little treatment. We investigate religiosity via electoral, household, and attitudinal surveys, distinguishing the effects of “behaving” and “believing.” The association between religiosity and EU Referendum vote choice and position is identified before and after inclusion of values, attitudinal, and civic engagement measures. Consistent with established findings, in socio-structural models Anglicans are more likely to support Brexit than religious Nones. More frequent church attendance is associated with being more pro-Remain. The Anglican effect is primarily mediated by anti-immigrant attitudes, authoritarianism, and salience of ethnic identity, suggesting a Christian nationalist aspect to Leave support. The attendance effect is mediated by warmer attitudes toward immigrants, and social capital. Notably, those exhibiting stronger orthodox belief tend to feature a stronger attachment to “Leave,” with this partly mediated by authoritarianism. To evaluate the net effect of religion on civic life, we should pay more attention to the cultural content of religious beliefs, and how they structure other values and attitudes.     

The Case for Utopia: History and the Possible Meanings of Brexit a Hundred Years On

How likely are utopian futures of the kind that Jeremy Corbyn has recently envisioned for the future of post-Brexit Britain? Such utopian scheming to restore the welfare state at the cost of the state gibes with the forecast of austerity from the Chancellor’s office, and pronouncements from canny observers that a post-EU Britain will need cash to support even its current programs, and therefore be forced to come to terms with the demands of banks and corporations. Corbyn’s utopianism is ridiculous unless we take into account long-term forces like the rebellion against expert rule and advocacy of democratic accountability by participatory movements. A deeper history of state, democracy, and expert rule in Brexit can highlight the underlying tensions and point to some sources of possible outcomes.     

上海全球城市的社会架构、文化融合与社会和谐

为了形成一个具有弹性的、可持续发展的全球城市社会架构,迈向2050年的上海需要在社会治理、社会政策与文化融合等方面作出前瞻性的战略思考.而活力、仁爱、包容、和谐将成为迈向2050年的上海的全球城市愿景.上海作为一个全球城市,其社会治理架构的核心要素应是开放、流动、多元、参与,这是文化融合与社会和谐的出发点.     

Remainers are nostalgic too: An exploration of attitudes towards the past and Brexit preferences

Nostalgia had a prominent place in the Brexit Referendum campaign, epitomized by Nigel Farage carrying around with him an old-fashioned blue British passport on the campaign trail. In this paper, we seek to examine British attitudes towards the past through a new survey instrument administered online in July and August 2018 (N = 3,000). We empirically establish two dimensions of nostalgia that are differentially associated with political preferences. We conclude that it is the substance of the nostalgia that matters, not the looking towards the past per se.     

World Cities and Global Commodity Chains: an introduction

The purpose of this special anniversary issue is to assess the possible cross-fertilization between two prominent analytical frameworks: the World City Network framework, in which researchers have studied the emergence of a globalized urban system for the provision of a host of advanced corporate services; and the Global Commodity Chain framework, in which researchers have scrutinized the interconnected functions, operations and transactions through which specific commodities are produced, distributed and consumed in a globalized economy. These two approaches have developed in parallel but have rarely been brought together. This introductory essay identifies the common roots and recent history of these two frameworks, and outlines how the six articles contribute to their theoretical and empirical cross-fertilization.     

全球城市：我们还能视而不见吗-

本文呼吁在世界事务研究中对全球城市给予更多的关注,以便更全面地解读全球治理这一由相互重叠的管辖权力范围组成的多层次的进程。文章指出,国际研究对全球城市的战略角色非常不敏感,同时展现了全球城市如何通过发挥其联网能力在世界舞台上演绎纵横,从城市的角度为厘清全球治理多层次的治理性提供了线索。笔者认为,通过全球城市的视角,能够使理论学者将被治理方式与政治团体相隔开的宏观进程与微观动态联系起来。     

The Organic Crisis of the British State: Putting Brexit in its Place

The Brexit vote was a singular event that is one symptom of a continuing organic crisis of the British state and society and a stimulus for further struggles over the future of the United Kingdom and its place in Europe and the wider world. This crisis previously enabled the rise of Thatcherism as a neoliberal and neoconservative project (with New Labour as its left wing) with an authoritarian populist appeal and authoritarian statist tendencies that persisted under the Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition (2010–2015). The 2015 election of a Conservative Government, which aimed to revive the Thatcherite project and entrench austerity, was the immediate context for the tragi-comedy of errors played out in the referendum. The ensuing politics and policy issues could promote the disintegration of the UK and, perhaps, the EU without delivering greater political sovereignty or a more secure and non-balkanized place for British economic space in the world market.     

建设绿色环保城市的基本特点——以广州国际友城为例

当今世界,环境已成为提升城市竞争力的重要砝码。牺牲环境换取经济的增长已被证明是不可持续的发展模式。经过10多年不懈努力,广州城市环境逐渐得到改善。但如果以国际先进城市为标杆,广州在绿色环保城市建设上仍存在一定差距。本文选取了广州国际友好城市的几个典型——悉尼、温哥华、洛杉矶等,详细梳理和总结了这些城市在绿色环保城市建设方面的特点与经验,并提出对广州未来绿色环保城市建设可资借鉴的若干方面。     

Labour in Global Production: Reflections on Coxian Insights in a World of Global Value Chains

Abstract

This essay reflects on Robert W. Cox's work on global production, labour, and labour governance, and considers how his insights might illuminate the present conjuncture for labour in production. I work with an understanding of that conjuncture as involving the rise to pre-eminence of global production networks (GPNs) and global value chains (GVCs) as the contemporary expression of the ongoing globalization of production. The primary tasks of the essay are twofold: first, to explore the dynamics of labour and power in the GVC-based global economy, with a particular emphasis on labour exploitation; and second, to link these questions to those of the governance of the global economy, focusing on the shift towards transnational private governance as the dominant mode of contemporary governance, and on the evolving strategies of organized labour and the International Labour Organization in that context.     

Brexit and the Economics of Political Change in Developed Countries

The economic forces underlying Brexit—and the election of Donald Trump in the US—are similar, but they are also well advanced in many European countries, where much of the population faces similar material insecurity and stagnation. These frustrations can easily be channelled by right-wing xenophobic forces. To combat this, the EU needs to undo some of its design flaws and particularly its adherence to fiscal austerity rules. Only a more progressive and more flexible union based on solidarity of peoples is likely to survive.     

Between Eurotopia and Nationalism: A Third Way for the Future of the EU

The Brexit has put the question of the final goal of integration on the agenda. The debate is characterised by a binary logic: either ever more deepening of integration or total disintegration with falling back into a system of nation states. While further integration is stopped by the heterogeneity of member states returning to the nation state is unrealistic, as European integration overlaps and is amalgamated with globalisation. There is a third way: flexibilisation through selective integration in certain areas and selective disintegration in others, based on variable coalitions of the willing.     

Urban Nightlife,Social Capital,and the Public Life of Cities1

Sociologists and urban scholars emphasize how nightlife establishments contribute to the social capital and public life of cities. In the interests of tempering this line of argument, I suggest three generalizable empirical findings that provide grounds for skepticism on this score: (1) the racial and class barriers to participation imposed by urban nightlife enterprises; (2) the normalization of gender differences and the routine harassment of women within such scenes; and (3) the lack of inclusiveness surrounding local nightlife in urban neighborhood communities. These findings suggest that nightlife scenes may function more efficiently as generators of bonding rather than bridging social capital.