The Impacts of Demographic Change on the Functional Economies of the North of England

In this editorial we pose four questions about the functional economies of northern England in the context of demographic change. How will the northern England population change in the next quarter of a century? What shape will the old of northern England be in and how will we look after them? Are the economies of northern England ready to meet the ageing challenge? Will silver entrepreneurs be able to contribute an economic revival of northern England? These are very important questions, the answers to which will affect the lives of 14 to 15 million people living in a laggard, peripheral European region in the near term future. The answers to these questions are provided by the four papers in this special issue.