The renewed focus on inequality which followed the financial/economic crisis of 2008-09 has further strengthened in 2016-18. Election and referendum results in a number of European countries have demonstrated the discontent of substantial sections of the population – people who feel they “don’t matter” in “places that don’t matter”. This increased interest in interpersonal and interregional inequality is reflected in national/regional policy shifts, and in new analyses of the trends and drivers of societal and geographical socio-economic disparities. Shifts in regional policy in 2017-18 are further fuelled by preparations for domestic frameworks and strategies for the post-2020 period of EU Cohesion policy, as well as by the progression of existing reforms and developments in domestic regional policy objectives, instruments and structures.
In this context, this paper provides a comparative overview of the regional socio-economic situation and regional development policies in 30 European countries.