This paper offers a contribution to contemporary studies of spatial planning. In particular, it problematises the relationship between neoliberal competitiveness and spatial planning. Neoliberal competitiveness is a hegemonic discourse in public policy as it (allegedly) provides the ‘path to economic nirvana’. However, commentators have critiqued its theoretical underpinnings and labelled it a ‘dangerous obsession’ for policy makers. Another set of literatures argues that spatial planning can be understood as a form of ‘neoliberal spatial governance’ and read in a ‘postpolitical’ framework that ‘privileges competitiveness’. Synthesising these debates this paper critically analyses the application and operationalisation of neoliberal competitiveness in Northern Ireland and Belfast. In focusing on this unique case study—a deeply divided society with a turbulent history—the paper takes the debate forward in arguing that rather than offering the ‘path to economic nirvana’ neoliberal competitiveness is a ‘postpolitical strategy’ and represents a ‘dangerous obsession’ for spatial planning.
AlbrechtsL, 2004, “Strategic (spatial) planning reexmained”Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design31743–758
2.
AlbrechtsLHealeyKunzmann K, 2003, “Strategic spatial planning and regional governance in Europe”Journal of the American Planning Association69113–129
3.
AllmendingerPHaughtonG, 2009, “Soft spaces, fuzzy boundaries, and metagovernance: The new spatial planning in the Thames Gateway”Environment and Planning A41617–633
4.
AllmendingerPHaughtonG, 2010, “Spatial planning, devolution, and new planning spaces”Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy28803–818
5.
AllmendingerPHaughtonG, 2012, “Post-political spatial planning in england: A crisis of consensus?”Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, New Series3789–103
6.
AllmendingerPHaughtonG, 2013, “The evolution and trajectories of neoliberal spatial governance: ‘neoliberal’ episodes in planning”Planning, Practice and Research286–26
7.
AminACameronAHudsonR, 2002Placing the Social Economy (Routledge, London)
BarryJ, 2009“‘It ain't easy being green’: Sustainable development between environment and economy in Northern Ireland”Irish Political Studies24(1) 45–66
10.
BeggI, 1999, “Cities and Competitiveness”Urban Studies36(5–6) 795–809
BeggI, 2002b, “Conclusions”, in Urban Competitiveness: Policies for Dynamic Cities Ed. BeggI, (The Policy Press, Bristol) pp 311–327
13.
Belfast City Council, Belfast2004Belfast: The Masterplan 2004–2020
14.
Belfast City Council, Belfast2005aBelfast City-region
15.
Belfast City Council, Belfast2005bBelfast: Moving the City Forward
16.
Belfast City Council, Belfast2006Belfast: Capital City II 2006–2010
17.
Belfast City Council, Belfast2007Staying Competitive: Belfast City Council's Local Economic Development Plan 2006–2010
18.
BoddyM, 2003, “Conclusions: Shaping the urban future”, in Urban Transformation and Urban Governance: Shaping the Competitive City of the Future Ed. BoddyM, (Policy Press, Bristol) pp 90–96
19.
BoddyMParkinsonM, 2004, “Competitiveness, cohesion and urban governance”, in City Matters: Competitiveness, Cohesion and Urban Governance Eds BoddyMParkinsonM, (Policy Press, Bristol) pp 407–432
20.
BolandP, 2007, “Unpacking the theory–policy interface of local economic development: An analysis of Cardiff and Liverpool”Urban Studies44(5–6) 1019–1039
21.
BrennerNTheodoreN, 2002, “Cities and the geographies of ‘actually existing neoliberalism’”Antipode34349–379
BrennerNPeckJTheodoreN, 2012, “Towards deep neoliberalization”, in Neoliberal Urbanism and its Discontents Eds KünkelJMayerM, (Palgrave McMillan, London) pp 27–45
24.
BristowG, 2005, “Everyone's a ‘winner’: Problematising the discourse of regional competitiveness”Journal of Economic Geography5285–304
25.
BristowG, 2009, “Limits to regional competitiveness”, in The Future of Regional Policy Ed. TomaneyJ, (Smith Institute, London) pp 25–32
26.
BristowG, 2010aCritical Reflections on Regional Competitiveness (Routledge, London) pp 3–12
27.
BristowG, 2010b, “Resilient regions: Re-'place'ing regional competitiveness”Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society3153–167
28.
BristowG, 2011, “Territorial competitiveness and local and regional economic development: A class tale of ‘theory led by policy’”, in Handbook of Local and Regional Development Eds PikeARodriguez-PoseATomaneyJ, (Routledge, London) pp 344–355
29.
BuddLHirmisA, 2004, “Conceptual framework for regional competitiveness”Regional Studies381015–1028
30.
CastreeN, 2010, “Crisis, continuity and change: Neoliberalism, the left and the future of capitalism”Antipode41185–213
31.
Centre for Cities, 2013Cities Outlook 2013Centre for Cities, London
32.
CookeP, 2004, “Competitiveness as cohesion: Social capital and the knowledge economy”, in City Matters. Competitiveness, Cohesion and Urban Governance Eds BoddyMParkinsonM, (Policy Press, Bristol) pp 93–109
33.
DavoudiSPendleburyJ, 2010, “The evolution of planning as an academic discipline”Town Planning Review81613–645
34.
DCLG, 2012National Planning Policy FrameworkDepartment for Communities of Local Government (The Stationery Office, London)
35.
DETI, 2010Social Economy Enterprise Strategy 2010–2011Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (Northern Ireland Executive, Belfast)
36.
DETI, 2012Economic Strategy: Priorities for Sustainable Growth and ProsperityDepartment for Enterprise, Trade and Investment (Northern Ireland Executive, Belfast)
37.
DoE, 2010Planning Policy Statement 4: Planning and Economic DevelopmentPlanning Policy Division, Department of the Environment, Belfast
38.
DRD, 2001Shaping Our Future. Regional Development Strategy for Northern Ireland 2025Department for Regional Development (Northern Ireland Executive, Belfast)
39.
DRD, 2010Regional Development Strategy, RDS 2035. Building a Better FutureDepartment for Regional Development (Northern Executive, Belfast)
FaludiA, 2002, “The European spatial development perspective: An overview”, in European Spatial Planning Ed. FaludiA, (Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, Cambridge, MA) pp 3–18
42.
FaludiA, 2010, “Centenary paper: European spatial planning: Past, present and future”Town Planning Review81–22
43.
HardingA, 2007, “Taking city regions seriously? Response to debate on ‘City-regions: New geographies of governance, democracy and social reproduction’”International Journal of Urban and Regional Research31443–458
44.
HarrisonJ, 2012, “Competition between places”, in Changing Gear—Is Localism the New Regionalism? Eds WardMHardyS, (The Smith Institute, London) pp 85–94
45.
HarveyD, 2006, “Neoliberalism as creative destruction”Geografiska Annaler: Series B, Human Geography88145–158
46.
HaughtonG, 2012, “Planning growth”, in Changing Gear—Is Localism the New Regionalism? Eds WardMHardyS, (The Smith Institute, London) pp 95–106
47.
HaughtonGAllmendingerPOosterlynckA, 2013, “Space of neoliberal experimentation: Soft spaces, postpolitics, and neoliberal governmentality”Environment and Planning A45217–234
48.
HayC, 2012, “The ‘dangerous obsession’ with cost competitiveness … and the not so dangerous obsession with competitiveness”Cambridge Journal of Economics36463–479
49.
HealeyP, 2004, “The treatment of space and place in the new strategic spatial planning in Europe”International Journal of Urban and Regional Research2845–67
50.
HillyardPRolstonWTomlinsonM, 2005Poverty and Conflict in Ireland: The International EvidenceCombat Poverty Agency/Institute of Public Administration, Dublin
51.
HorganG, 2006, “Devolution, direct rule and neo-liberal reconstruction in Northern Ireland”Critical Social Policy26656–668
52.
HugginsR, 2003, “Creating a UK competitiveness index: Regional and local benchmarking”Regional Studies3789–96
53.
HugginsRCliftonN, 2011, “Competitiveness, creativity, place-based development”Environment and Planning A431341–1362
54.
HugginsRThompsonP, 2010UK Competitiveness Index 2010Centre for International Competitiveness, Cardiff School of Management, University of Wales Institute, Cardiff
55.
HutchinsM, 2003Belfast: Benchmarking a Competitive European CityEuropean Institute for Urban Affairs, Liverpool John Moores University
56.
HutchinsMParkinsonM, 2005Competitive Scottish Cities? Placing Scotland's Cities in the UK and European ContextScottish Executive, Edinburgh
57.
Invest NI, 2011Corporate Plan 2011–2015: Ideas to ActionsInvest NI, Belfast
58.
JacksonT, 2009Prosperity Without Growth? The Transition to a Sustainable EconomySustainable Development Commission, London
59.
JonasAWardK, 2007, “There's more than one way to be ‘serious’ about city-regions”International Journal of Urban and Regional Research31647–656
60.
KitsonMMartinRTylerP, 2004, “Regional competitiveness: An elusive yet key concept?”Regional Studies38991–999
61.
KrugmanP, 1996a, “Competitiveness: A dangerous obsession?”, in Pop Internationalism (MIT Press, Cambridge, MA) pp 3–23
62.
KrugmanP, 1996b, “Making sense of the competitiveness debate”Oxford Review of Economic Policy12(3) 17–25
LoveringJ, 2001, “The coming regional crisis (and how to avoid it)”Regional Studies35349–354
65.
LoveringJ, 2007, “The relationship between urban regeneration and neoliberalism: Two presumptuous theories and a research agenda”International Planning Studies12343–366
66.
McKaySBerryJMcGrealS, 2003, “Planning enforcement: Lessons for practice and procedure”Planning Theory and Practice4325–346
MaleckiE, 2007, “Cities and regions competing in the global economy: Knowledge and local development policies”Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy25638–654
69.
Martínez-AlierJPascualUVivienFZaccaiE, 2010, “Sustainable de-growth: Mapping the context, criticisms and future prospects of an emergent paradigm”Ecological Economics691741–1747
70.
MurtaghBShirlowP, 2012, “Devolution and the politics of development in Northern”Environment and Planning C: Government and Society3030–61
71.
NagleJ, 2009, “Potemkin Village: Neo-liberalism and peace-building in Northern Ireland?”Ethnopolitics8173–190
72.
NewmanP, 2008, “Strategic spatial planning: Collective action and moments of opportunity”European Planning Studies161371–1383
73.
OFMDFM, 2006First Steps Towards Sustainability. A Sustainable Development Strategy for Northern IrelandOffice of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister (Northern Ireland Executive, Belfast)
74.
OFMDFM, 2011Programme for Government, 2011–2015Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister (Northern Ireland Executive, Belfast)
75.
O'HearnD, 2008, “How has the peace changed Northern Irish political economy”Ethnopolitics7101–118
76.
ParkerGDoakJ, 2012, “Competitiveness”, in Key Concepts in Planning (Sage, London) pp 206–216
77.
ParkinsonM, 2004Belfast: A Competitive CityEuropean Institute for Urban Affairs, Liverpool John Moores University
78.
ParkinsonM, 2007Where is Belfast Going?European Institute for Urban Affairs, Liverpool John Moores University
79.
ParkinsonMBoddyM, 2004, “Introduction”, in City Matters: Competitiveness, Cohesion and Urban Governance Eds BoddyMParkinsonM, (Policy Press, Bristol) pp 1–10
80.
ParkinsonMKarechaJ, 2006Cardiff: A Competitive European City? final report to Cardiff Council's Economic Scrutiny Committee, Cardiff County Council
81.
ParkinsonMHutchinsMSimmieJClarkG, 2004Competitive European Cities: Where Do the Core Cities Stand? (Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, London)
82.
PeckJTickellA, 2006, “Conceptualising neoliberalism, thinking Thatcherism”, in Contesting Neoliberalism: Urban Frontiers Eds HelgarLPeckJSheppardE, (Guilford Press, New York) pp 26–50
SwyngedouwE, 2009, “The antimonies of the postpolitical city: In search of a democratic politics of environmental production”International Journal of Urban and Regional Research33601–620
94.
Tewdwr-JonesMMouratoJ, 2005, “Territorial cohesion, economic growth and the desire for European ‘balanced competitiveness’”Town Planning Review7669–80
95.
Tewdwr-JonesMGallentNMorphetJ, 2010, “An anatomy of spatial planning: Coming to terms with emerging spatial principles in UK Planning”European Planning Studies18239–257
96.
TurokI, 2004, “Cities, regions and competitiveness”Regional Studies381069–1083
97.
TylerP, 2004Turning Belfast AroundDepartment of Land Economy, University of Cambridge
98.
VanoloA, 2010, “European spatial planning between competitiveness and territorial cohesion: Shadows of neo-liberalism”European Planning Studies181301–1315
99.
WardKJonasA, 2004, “Competitive city-regionalism as a politics of space: A critical reinterpretation of the new regionalism”Environment and Planning A362119–2139
