Entrepreneurship is widely recognised as a key determinant of economic growth, regional prosperity and sustainable development. Using a panel model with data from the value added tax register, this paper estimates spatial variation in small growing firms across 32 Scottish regions for the period 1998–2012. Results show there is considerable variation in small growing firms across Scottish regions and may be explained by demand, supply, policy, cultural factors and agglomeration benefits. Scotland has historically suffered from low levels of entrepreneurial activity; however, this paper provides relevant and timely findings into a form of entrepreneurial activity that until now has largely been overlooked.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of corporate governance structures in the UK and Germany addressing the extent to which corporate governance structures may have been a contributory factor to the recent banking crisis. Following a review of shareholder and stakeholder theories of corporate governance and a comparative overview of corporate governance codes in the UK and Germany, the authors aim to provide some country level macroeconomic data and performance related data for a small number of large banks in the UK and Germany. Design/methodology/approachThe paper is structured as follows. It first reviews the existing literature that underpins the stakeholder vs shareholder debate within corporate governance. It then reviews the current codes of conduct and governance structures implemented by UK and German banks. An analysis of the extent to which the banking crises can be attributed to failures in governance is presented and finally some conclusions and recommendations are outlined.FindingsFindings suggest that while corporate governance in banks would appear to have been a significant factor in the recent banking crisis, based on the performance data, it cannot be said that a corporate governance approach based on either shareholder capitalism (UK) or stakeholder capitalism (Germany) is more at fault than the other. However, it is clear that UK and German corporate governance structures were not adequate to prevent the recent banking crisis and only time will tell whether the remedial actions taken have been sufficient. The present findings, in line with those presented in the Walker report in 2009, suggest that the codes of conduct in both countries were not adequate to deal with the complex issues caused by the financial crisis and that changes need to be implemented. The authors fully acknowledge that corporate governance only played a part in the financial crisis and in order to try to stop a repeat of this, the whole regulatory environment in both countries needs to be strengthened.Research limitations/implicationsThe main limitation of the study lies with a lack of complex analysis undertaken to support the findings.Practical implicationsThe findings from the study suggest that, regardless of the type of governance in operation, current corporate governance rules were not adequate and that a new set of rules is needed in both the UK and Germany. The findings also suggest that the stakeholder/shareholder debate may not be as important as previously claimed and that regulators need to find good governance rules, regardless of theoretical underpinnings.Social implicationsGovernments across the world are currently cutting public spending in an extreme fashion and this is, partly, due to the banking crises. Therefore, poor governance in the banking sector is leading to massive social problems in the real world as governments cut services.Originality/valueThe paper is original as it is the first attempt to discuss the corporate governance failing and the banking crises from a sharehol...

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The paper considers a test of the theory of the firm and the alternative theories of firm behaviour, using a combination of both primary and secondary data. The primary data was collected from 310 managers of UK based firms and the secondary data was collated from the FAME (Financial Analyses Made Easy) database and the FTSE ISS Corporate Governance Index. This data is used in a number of binary probit models to test the validity of competing theories of the firm. Finally, the data is used to test an original hypothesis, that the level of corporate governance is the factor which determines whether the managers of a firm will aim for maximum profits. The results of the probit model show that, regardless of any other variable, a firm with a high degree of corporate governance is more likely to aim for a maximum level of profits than a firm with a lower level of corporate governance.

Comparing VAT registration data with Scottish Clearing Bank Statistics on new start-up activity we assess the extent to which VAT registration data reflect the general level of start-up activity in the Scottish economy for the period 2002–2009. Findings reveal that VAT registration data underestimate the general level of start-up activity by 39%. The data also reveal there is considerable spatial variation in start-up activity across Scottish regions and the recent recession has affected start-up activity irrespective of which measure is used. It is also clear, however, that the recession has affected the general level of start-up activity to a far greater extent.