Inward Investment and Economic Regeneration: Listening to Workers in Rhondda-Cynon-Taff

Abstract

The paper presents the results of a two-year research study conducted in the Rhondda-Cynon-Taff local authority area of South Wales. The research focused on assessing the effect of the inward-investment strategy on local economic regeneration and local people's reaction to the policy. The paper reports survey questionnaire results an d the interview responses of local employees. A summary of the recent employment history of the area is followed by a discussion of policies introduced to tackle unemployment. Local people express cynicism about foreign companies, suggesting that the grants they receive are more important to them than genuine commitment to the regeneration of the local economy. The feeling was expressed that the balance of fun ding priorities works against local entrepreneurs, while the concentration on ‘foreign saviours’ also undermines their confidence. The paper concludes by recommending several new approaches to tackling unemployment in RCT: focusing on Tower Colliery as a ‘local champion’; emphasizing ‘associative entrepreneurship’ that prioritizes the needs of the community rather than the success of the individual; and introducing a Citizen s' In come scheme to tackle the problem of economic inactivity.