Evolving regional and local economic development in New Zealand

Regional and local economic development policy and practise has evolved over time both globally and in New Zealand specifically. Regional development support in this country, prior to 1984, focussed on conventional policies of regional investment and subsidies. The costly nature of support and the changing global context encouraged policy reformulation. After 1984, the pursuit of neo-liberal economic policies encouraged a focus on regional partnership formation and local level autonomy in alignment with thinking on ‘new regionalism’. More recently, increasing centralisation of economic policy, the narrowing of the local government mandate and new regional development thinking, which is grounded on market-based attraction of foreign investment, reveals the degree to which regional and local policy has evolved, and become more centralised and market focussed. At both the national and local levels, economic policies now tend to downplay social and community considerations in favour of market-led and business-focussed support.