Need for UK-wide Regeneration Task Force(s)

Area regeneration (regional, urban, rural) in the UK is not working ! We need a National Regeneration Task Force (which represents the interests of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) as well as regional task forces.

In England, these should be set up by the Regional Development Agencies. However, they should not be quango-led ! Representation should go beyond "the usual suspects" for which regeneration and development "sectors" are somewhat notorious.

As part of my contribution to the much needed regeneration debate, I'm this week re-activating two blogs :

• Smart Limits to Growth (http://smartlimits2growth.wordpress.com/) tomorrow
• & A Manifesto for Regeneration (http://regen-man.blogspot.com) on Friday

Incidentally, the major catalyst for this blog was a train journey from Worcester to Birmingham International Station in March 2006 : the "wastelands" of the West Midlands Conurbation inspiring a post entitled "The End of Birmingham and the Beginning of My Blog" (See Planning 22/9/2006).