WILL ATTRACTING THE “CREATIVE CLASS” BOOST ECONOMIC GROWTH IN OLD INDUSTRIAL REGIONS? A CASE STUDY OF SCOTLAND

Attracting in-migration of the creative class has been argued by Florida (2002) to be a route to higher economic growth in the era of the knowledge economy. This paper critically evaluates this proposition in relation to old industrial regions using the example of Scotland. The paper presents an assessment of, in the first instance, to what extent there is a shortage of skilled, talented and entrepreneurial individuals and, in the second instance, whether a talent attraction strategy alone can hope to attract such people to Scotland. It is proposed that for most migrants the availability of appropriate economic opportunities is a prerequisite for mobility. However, despite uncertain evidence that place attractiveness is a catalyst to mobility among the so-called creative class, this is not a reason for dismissing talent attraction programmes. Instead it is argued that talent attraction programmes have the potential to contribute to old industrial economies, but their success will be greatest when talent attraction is carefully targeted and based on economic realities rather than the marketing of ethereal conceptions of place attractiveness.     

The Orange Order and the expansion of the frontier in Ontario, 1830–1900

To date, the geographical implications of the role played by the Orange Order in the settlement of Ontario have largely been ignored by comparison with the role played by the Catholic Church in Quebec. The origins and processes of the transfer of Orangeism from Ireland are examined. The spread of the movement inside Ontario and the role it played in the lives of the settlers is related to the settlement process in a period of rapid social as well as spatial change.