Background and Context
Regional Inequality
Great Britain has significant and persistent regional economic inequalities that migration could potentially help reduce.
Research Question
The study examines whether migration patterns vary across regions and if migration enhances wages as economic theory predicts.
Study Period & Method
Analysis uses British Household Panel Survey data from 1991-2007, a period of stable economic growth without major shocks.
Migration Primarily Flows Between Neighboring Regions
- 77.6% of migrants leaving London move to the Rest of the South.
- Migration primarily flows between neighboring regions, with very limited long-distance movement.
- Southern regions, particularly the Rest of South, attract migrants from all other regions.
Housing Tenure Creates Major Barriers to Regional Migration
- Private renters are 47% more likely to migrate between regions than homeowners.
- Public housing renters are 18% less likely to migrate between regions than homeowners.
- Housing market rigidities create significant barriers to labor mobility across Great Britain.
Persistent Regional Wage Disparities Across Great Britain (1991-2007)
- Greater London consistently maintains the highest average hourly real wages across the study period.
- Wales and the North have consistently lower wages than the national average.
- Despite some growth in all regions, regional wage disparities persisted throughout 1991-2007.
Higher Education Concentration in Greater London
- In 2007, 38.2% of Greater London's workers had university degrees compared to only 19.1% in Wales.
- All regions experienced significant educational upgrading between 1991 and 2007.
- The educational advantage of Greater London persisted throughout the study period.
Migration Wage Premium Varies Dramatically Across Regions
- Contrary to economic theory, migration only delivers wage benefits in Wales, Scotland, and the North.
- Migrating to Greater London actually results in a wage penalty of 13.4%.
- These findings challenge the assumption that labor mobility will reduce regional economic disparities.
Contribution and Implications
- Housing policy promoting home ownership can unintentionally reduce regional labor mobility, hindering economic adjustment mechanisms.
- Regional differences in migration determinants suggest national migration policies may be less effective than regionally-tailored approaches.
- Weak wage benefits from migration challenge economic theories that labor mobility will reduce regional economic disparities.
- Findings point to the need for place-based economic development alongside policies supporting mobility.
- Housing market rigidities are a critical barrier to regional migration that policy should address.
Data Sources
- Migration flows visualization is based on Table 4 showing the percentage movement between regions.
- Housing tenure effects visualization is based on Table 5 showing migration probability coefficients.
- Regional wage disparities chart uses data from Table 2 showing average hourly real wages by region.
- Education levels chart uses data from Table 3 showing the percentage of workers by education level.
- Migration wage premium chart uses coefficients from Table 9 showing the effect of migration on wages.
Infographics by Topic
