The Theory of the "Internal Colony" and the Political Economy of Wales

The development of Wales is currently being reappraised in terms of the model of 'Internal Colonialism'. This model assumes that spatial inequali ties are primarily due to political intervention in the form of the subordination of a distinct society (Wales) to a central elite (the English ruling class). It follows that only a nationalist or separatist path can remove the obstacles to develop ment. This paper examines the theoretical and empirical aspects of this theory in relation to Wales. It shows that the conceptions of economic exploitation' and the State employed in the model derive from an eclectic, ahistorical approach with no firm material basis. The empirical predictions are not borne out by an in spection of reality, and they actually obscure important aspects of the present conjuncture. An alternative approach, developed from an analysis of the domi nant tendencies of capitalist production in different historical phases, makes it possible to understand the transformation in the articulation of the Welsh economy that is occuring in the present period. This approach also reveals that the State is at present a major factor inhibiting the internal disintegration of the Welsh economy. The theory of 'Internal Colonialism' fails to reveal this or to provide a basis for understanding historical and contemporary Welsh develop ment. In particular, it obscures class relationships. Welsh development can best be understood as a particular instance of capitalist uneven development.