Changing UK Economy

Question 1

In general how has the structure of the UK workforce changed over the last 50 years?

Answer 1

Less primary and secondary sector employment, more tertiary and quaternary

Question 2

Why has employment declined in the primary and secondary sectors? (4)

Answer 2

1) It became cheaper for TNCs to manufacture things in other countries due to cheaper labour (e.g Ford Motors factory in Dagenham, now mainly operates in Europe; Burberry)
2) Government policy e.g closing down coal mines (Thatcher, 1984) amid environmental and political concerns
3) The rise of automation in factories
4) Foreign companies out-competed British companies e.g cars: Nissan, Toyota, Honda (Japanese)

Question 3

As well as banks, give examples of different types of companies operating in Canary Wharf. (3)

Answer 3

1) Law firms (for investing in different currencies)
2) Insurance companies
3) IT companies (facilitate global trade)

Question 4

Why was Canary Wharf developed?

Answer 4

The government (under Thatcher) wanted to boost tertiary and quaternary sectors through developing the ‘knowledge economy’

Question 5

Define biotechnology and give 4 examples of the different sub-sections of it.

Answer 5

The application of science to solve global problems

1) Drugs/pharmaceuticals
2) Medical biotechnology (using living things to treat diseases)
3) Medical technology (e.g CT scanners, plasters, defibrillators)
4) Industrial biotechnology (using living things for industry e.g enzymes)

Question 6

Where are most biotechnology companies located and why?

Answer 6

The South East (more people with good education), away from big cities (they need land for offices and labs), close to universities (for researching) and close to airports (for meetings, etc.)

Question 7

How does the government classify jobs? (4)

Answer 7

1) Primary/secondary/tertiary/quaternary
2) Skilled/unskilled (or levels of responsibility e.g managerial/menial)
3) Full-time/part-time
4) Temporary/permanent

Question 8

What are most jobs in the retail sector like and why? (3)

Answer 8

1) Temporary because there are peak times (e.g Christmas) and less busy times.
2) Part-time because the majority of sales are done at the weekend, for instance.
3) Often taken by women (esp. part-time) because it suits mothers who want to match working hours with school hours.

Question 9

Define footloose.

Answer 9

Not tied to any one location, e.g. delivery, logistics, building.

Question 10

Give features of the ‘new economy’ (8 features + examples).

Answer 10

1) Tertiary sector
2) Usually low wages (minimum wage or a bit more for some jobs)
3) Often footloose
4) Mainly employs women
5) Often based away from city centres (cheaper land, local labour)
6) Jobs are unskilled and don’t need many qualifications
7) About 25% are part-time, and many are temporary
Examples are delivery, retail, etc.

Question 11

Give features of the ‘knowledge economy’ (7)

Answer 11

1) Quaternary sector
2) Based in big cities with good networks (high-speed internet) where there are lots of skilled and educated people
3) Jobs are advertised all over the world to ensure quality of staff
4) Jobs usually require degrees
5) Mostly full-time employment, including contractual
6) Salaries vary, but are usually very high, even for the newly graduated (about £60,000)
7) Mainly employs men, especially banking, biotech

Question 12

In what ways is the North East deprived? (5)

Answer 12

1) In 2012, unemployment there was over 11%. Now unemployment is about 8%, still the worst in the UK.
2) Average household income of £26,000 per year (lowest in the UK).
3) In 2011 25% of jobs in public sector -between 2010 and 2011 32,000 jobs were lost from the North East’s public sector due to government cuts.
4) It has the worst indicators for deaths from smoking, heart disease, strokes and cancer.
5) It has the lowest percentage of adults who eat healthily.

Question 13

Define household income.

Answer 13

It is the total earned by everyone in a household, after paying tax. The average UK household has two earners.

Question 14

Why has the North East declined since the 1960s?

Answer 14

The Domino effect
The coal mines closed down (they were too expensive), so steel and aluminium became more expensive, which made shipbuilding very difficult, and those industries closed (also due to globalisation and competition from Asia). This caused massive unemployment and damaged other local businesses and services.

Question 15

What is the North East’s economy like now? (3)

Answer 15

1) Some manufacture (Nissan in Sunderland, the biggest car factory in Europe).
2) Lots of tertiary public sector employment.
3) Some transport, call centres, low-scale banking (Virgin Money).

Question 16

What makes the South East desirable? (6)

Answer 16

1) Open countryside
2) Weather (driest and warmest region)
3) Beautiful coastlines
4) Low unemployment (currently 3.7%)
5) High incomes (£35,200 avg. household income, UK’s 2nd highest)
6) Good transport links with London (High Speed trains)

Question 17

Why are there lots of job opportunities in the South East? (5)

Answer 17

1) Ports (Southampton and Dover), the two largest in the UK
2) Most biotechnology companies are based here
3) IT companies are based in the ‘M4 corridor’
4) Growth in public sector (following losses in the North East)
5) Easy to commute to London

Question 18

What are the indicators that the South East is an affluent region? (5)

Answer 18

1) It is the most expensive region for house and land prices other than London.
2) High incomes (£35,200 avg. household income, UK’s 2nd highest).
3) People spend the most here on healthy foods, live longer and eat in restaurants a lot.
4) Second biggest contribution to GDP after London
5) Low unemployment

Question 19

Why did Glasgow’s shipping industry decline?

Answer 19

Oversees competition (mainly from Asia) led to deindustrialisation in the 1980s.

Question 20

Define diversification.

Answer 20

Expanding the economy to encompass varied industries and economic activities, rather than just one (i.e shipbuilding) so that if one fails, it wont affect the others.

Question 21

Positive impacts of deindustrialisation (5)

Answer 21

1) More available land for the future development e.g. housing
2) Less water used in industrial processes
3) Less energy required to operate machines reduces CO2 emissions
4) Reduced traffic congestion near factory
5) Reduced noise and air pollution

Question 22

Negative environmental impacts of deindustrialisation (5)

Answer 22

1) Derelict land looks unsightly
2) Deteriorating infrastructure e.g.lack of investment in roads
3) Empty factory buildings associated litter or vandalism
4) Manufacturing goods further away leads to greater transport problems and pollution elsewhere.
5) Having to transport products longer distances causing air pollution and CO2.

Question 23

Negative economic impacts of deindustrialisation (5)

Answer 23

1) Loss of income for industry workers
2) Loss of income for local businesses (people have less money to spend).
3) Loss of income for the government (people don’t pay as much income tax).
4) More income-support benefits are needed (government needs to spend more even though it gets less from income tax).
5) Out-migration from the city of skilled workers.

Question 24

Negative social impacts of deindustrialisation (4)

Answer 24

1) Problems with family breakdowns (due to unemployment and poverty).
2) Increased alcoholism
3) Increased crime
4) The poor image of the area put off new investors (cycle of decline).

Question 25

Give the stages in the cycle of growth (7)

Answer 25

1) Government investment (also from the EU in Glasgow’s case)…
2) causes new industries to locate there…
3) creating jobs…
4) giving people more money to spend…
5) causing the local economy to grow…
6) creating a new image that encourages investors…
7) causing people to move into the area

Question 26

Give the stages in the cycle of decline (8)

Answer 26

1) When the market declines…
2) industries close…
3) leading to unemployment…
4) giving people less money to spend…
5) so the local economy declines…
6) causing more and more business to close…
7) so the derelict land creates a poor image that puts off investors…
8) so there is no new investment

Question 27

How and why have arts and culture been improved since Glasgow’s deindustrialisation? (4)

Answer 27

1) Many famous architects have designed buildings for Glasgow.
2) The government has injected money into the Burrell Collection to make a world-famous art gallery.
3) Various other developments e.g Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre, Glasgow Science Centre, Riverside Museum of Travel and Transport and the Tall Ship at Riverside.
4) In order to bring in tourists, who spend money in hotels and restaurants, bringing employment there

Question 28

How has the media helped in Glasgow’s regeneration? (3)

Answer 28

1) The BBC set up headquarters for Scottish TV and radio in 2007.
2) STV, a commercial broadcaster, is located in Glasgow.
3) Advertising the various new arts and culture centres has increased tourism and improved Glasgow’s image.

Question 29

What is a mixed-use development and give an example in Glasgow?

Answer 29

An area with flats/houses alongside shops and restaurants

Riverside flats in Clydebank

Question 30

Define a brownfield site.

Answer 30

An area of land that has been built on before and is suitable for redevelopment.

Question 31

Define a greenfield site.

Answer 31

It is an area of land that has not previously been built on.

Question 32

How can brownfield sites be regenerated? (8)

Answer 32

1) Retail e.g shopping centres/complexes located away from towns (Bluewater, Westfield)
2) Flood control and management
3) New commercial sites for office space (e.g Canary Wharf, Fort Dunlop)
4) Mixed-use developments (e.g in Clydebank, Glasgow)
5) Residential use (e.g King’s Cross, London - old warehouses converted into flats)
6) Canalside walks, riverside cafes and restaurants (e.g Clydebank)
7) Wildlife habitats (woodlands, wildflower meadows)
8) Recreational sites (parks, cycleways and bridleways)

Question 33

What are the disadvantages of regenerating brownfield sites over greenfield sites? (4)

Answer 33

1) Can be more expensive due to clean-up costs
2) Most sites are located away from areas in high demand of housing, etc. i.e the South East
3) Often provide wildlife habitats or public green spaces
4) Harder to plan (you have to worry about existing infrastructure e.g roads, unlike with greenfield sites)

Question 34

Case study - Fort Dunlop

Answer 34

Dunlop Tyres employed over 12,000 at its peak in Fort Dunlop, Birmingham
It closed in the 1980s because manufacture and storage became cheaper overseas, becoming a brownfield site
Since 2006 regeneration it now contains hotels, business parks and restaurants/cafes, as well as architects, designers, accountants and independent sellers

Question 35

What are the disadvantages of regenerating greenfield sites over brownfield sites? (4)

Answer 35

1) Loss of farmland (750,000 hectares between 1945 and 2010).
2) Damage to rural landscapes
3) Can be more expensive because there is no road, water or electricity infrastructure.
4) Many sites are on ‘greenbelt’ land - complicated to get planning permission.

Question 36

Why does the government in Solihull want to develop greenfield sites and what do they plan to do?

Answer 36

There is a severe shortage of housing (10,000+ on the social housing waiting list).
They want to build 10,500 homes on greenfield sites.

Question 37

Where is Solihull?

Answer 37

Part of the West Midlands conurbation (8 miles from Birmingham).

Question 38

Where might the UK’s economy veer towards in the future? (3)

Answer 38

1) Digital technology
2) Education and research
3) Green employment

Question 39

In what ways is the UK already a digital economy? (2)

Answer 39

1) The digital sector is worth £118 billion, 7.3% of the economy as of 2014.
2) 1.4 million people are employed in the digital sector, 4.4% of total jobs as of 2014.

Question 40

Where might the UK’s digital economy expand next? (5)

Answer 40

1) Home Internet use (online shopping, paying bills, managing heating, home security).
2) Environmental management (flood warnings, traffic flow in cities).
3) Health care (patients contacting doctors via Skype or similar).
4) Education (with high uni fees, teaching could be done online for rural areas).
5) Tele-working

Question 41

What is needed to facilitate growth in the education and research sectors?

Answer 41

A higher proportion of people having degrees i.e expansion of higher education (the UK is falling behind many other countries).

Question 42

What are the biggest research and development sectors in the UK? (5)

Answer 42

1) Pharmaceuticals and biotech
2) Aerospace and weaponry
3) Software
4) Cars
5) Telecommunications

Question 43

Examples of how scientific research benefits the UK economy (3)

Answer 43

1) New personal technologies (TVs, smartphones, smartwatches, etc.).
2) New drugs (new antibiotics are in high demand)
3) GM seeds/crops

Question 44

What does the green sector involve? (4)

Answer 44

1) Products made from renewable/recycled materials (e.g fleeces made from plastic bottles)
2) Energy- and water-efficient buildings made from natural materials (e.g in London’s Olympic Park)
3) Tertiary industries (e.g eco-tourism)
4) Quaternary services (e.g architects designing eco-friendly buildings)

Question 45

How does globalisation benefit employers? (2)

Answer 45

1) Easier for skilled foreign workers to get to the UK to work, rather than paying to train UK workers.
2) Graduates from the UK can migrate to Australia and the EU to fill skills shortages there.

Question 46

Define tele-working and who is it mainly useful for?

Answer 46

Working from home

People who live in rural areas

Question 47

Define freelancing.

Answer 47

Taking on a single job/ contract without commitment to working more once it’s finished.

Question 48

Where is self-employment particularly prevalent? (3)

Answer 48

1) Construction (builders, joiners)
2) Knowledge-workers (IT experts, accountants, investment analysts).
3) Services (teaching professionals, social work contractors)

Question 49

Advantages of flexible working (10)

Answer 49

1) Better health from more breaks
2) Less commuting-related stress
3) Less absentees and taking sick-days
4) Lower staff turnover, so people with key skills are kept
5) Better for parents because they can save money on childcare by working from home.
6) Ideal for disabled people who don’t want to travel
7) Facilitates part-time work
8) Companies are more productive as people don’t waste time commuting.
9) Less traffic congestion and pollution because fewer people travel
10) Companies don’t have to pay rents for office space

Question 50

Disadvantages of flexible working (4)

Answer 50

1) Possibly lower wages because there’s less contact with your boss so you might lose out on promotions/pay rises.
2) Isolated from colleagues
3) Hard to motivate and organise at home
4) You can’t get away from work because it’s always around you.

Question 51

Advantages of self-employment (3)

Answer 51

1) Variety in work
2) Independence and flexibility
3) Employers can out-source work at busy times without paying full-time wages (which comes with pension contributions, national insurance, etc.)

Question 52

Disadvantages of self-employment (3)

Answer 52

1) Money isn’t constant, only when work’s available
2) Less secure because there’s no sick pay, pension or health-care package
3) You have to save for your own future

Question 53

Define flexible working.

Answer 53

Being able to work anywhere, anytime (no fixed hours).