Jim O'Neill, Columnist

U.K. Cities Need Devolution, Too

The U.K.'s challenge is to promote city-led growth beyond London. Devolution would help.

October 9, 2014 at 4:03 AM UTC

Jim O'Neill worked for Goldman Sachs Group Inc. from 1995 until 2013, serving most recently as chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, and as the firm's chief economist from 2001 to 2011. Before joining Goldman Sachs, he was head of global research at Swiss Bank Corp. O'Neill is the creator of the BRIC acronym, which was derived from his thesis that Brazil, Russia, India and China would dominate growth in emerging markets. He is a member of the boards of the Brussels-based policy-research centers Itinera Institute and Bruegel. He earned a degree in economics from Sheffield University in 1978 and a doctorate from the University of Surrey in 1982. He lives in London.

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Almost exactly a year ago, I wrote an article for Bloomberg View about the importance of cities worldwide in promoting economic growth. I was about to embark on a project in the U.K. -- leading the independent City Growth Commission, supported by the Royal Society of Arts -- which is now winding up. Later this month, we'll publish our final report and recommendations.

For much of the past 12 months, I've traveled around the U.K.'s great cities, discovering or rediscovering their rich diversity and depth. Visiting Glasgow just after the Scottish referendum was especially interesting. That city, unlike Scotland as a whole, voted for independence. Yet Glasgow poses the question, What is the right locus of independence -- state, region or town?