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** Sunday 3rd May 2020 View this email in your browser ([link removed])
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** Welcome to the IEA's Weekend Newsletter!
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* TALKING POINT: Coronavirus and history, and thinking about what is to come
* Winning the battle..
* ..But losing the war?
* Webinars of the week

TALKING POINT: Coronavirus and history, and thinking about what is to come, by the IEA’s Head of Education, Dr Steve Davies

The topic of the Coronavirus pandemic and its effect has been inescapable this week, but already thoughts are starting to turn to what will come after the pandemic has passed, and also how the trends and tendencies that were around before January of this year will play out and be affected by it.

In recent weeks I’ve been a guest on two IEA vidcasts on thehttps://youtu.be/rAY-fw55fCEhistory of pandemics and the light this casts on our current situation. You can watch them here ([link removed]) and here ([link removed]) . I then did a longer webinar ([link removed]) on the same subject.

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This week the IEA published a briefing ([link removed]) based on the webinar with additional material, in particular examining how several of our systems, and particularly the hospital system, are now much less resilient than they were 40 to 50 years ago (so that a repeat of the flu pandemic of 1968-9 would now be much more serious). This section of the paper was put up as a blog post ([link removed]) . I was quoted in the Sunday Express ([link removed]) and wrote for The Telegraph ([link removed]) on the subject.

Later I took part in a discussion in the latest episode of #IEAsolation ([link removed]) with Johan Norberg, moderated by the IEA’s Mark Littlewood, which touched on this, the impact of Covid-19 on globalisation, and on how the Swedish strategy is working out as compared to the route taken by other nations. I also gave a Zoom talk on the likely results of the pandemic to the Institute for Liberal Studies in Canada, but sadly this didn’t record properly!

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One thing that has been driven out of the news by Covid-19 is Brexit and the continuing negotiations with the EU. On that subject, my book ([link removed]) about Brexit and the realignment of British politics came out this week from the American Institute for Economic Research, which you can order here ([link removed]) .

One very probable result of the epidemic is that the realignment that was under way before will continue and get a boost. The turn of many people on the centre right away from free markets is likely to be even more pronounced. In that context, the requirement to restate market liberal principles in general will become even more pressing, with a need to rebut ideas that come from the nationalist and protectionist right as much as those from the socialist left.

Winning the battle...

The Government has received criticism in recent weeks over the roll-out of testing and the sourcing and distribution of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).

The private sector has proven resilient in recent weeks – supermarkets for instance, have responded to shortages and returned to normality rapidly despite big changes in demand. But,
as the IEA’s Senior Academic Fellow Professor Philip Booth wrote in The Telegraph ([link removed]) , centrally planned institutions – among them the NHS – have “not served us well in this crisis”.

Drawing on the British experience of the Second World War, Philip notes that “If central planning does not work when the government has one overriding objective of beating the virus,
it is certainly not the system to adopt in peacetime”. Philip’s article was discussed in more detail in a live stream, which you can re-watch on our YouTube channel here ([link removed]) – and be sure to
subscribe.

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There is a tendency to blame the Government for reported shortages of PPE: in a state run system, the distribution of resources will often be dictated by political decisions.

But as IEA Head of Lifestyle Economics Christopher Snowdon argues ([link removed]) , the NHS and Public Health England have a significant degree of autonomy and a vast layer of bureaucrats whose job it is to make decisions.

Blaming “the Government” for decisions taken at the micro level is not only questionable in itself, he writes ([link removed]) , but unhelpful in that it stops us from learning the right lessons.

...But losing the war?

The pandemic has not brought about a ceasefire in the battle of ideas. While Bernie Sanders and Jeremy Corbyn have both stepped back from frontline politics, they lay claim to “winning the argument” both ideologically and generationally.

Do they have a point? In a new video ([link removed]) , IEA Director General Mark Littlewood and Head of Political Economy Dr Kristian Niemietz join Head of Communications Emma Revell to ask whether socialism is winning the war. If you haven’t already, make sure to download Kristian’s book: Socialism: The Failed Idea That Never Dies ([link removed]) ; for free here ([link removed]) .

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Certainly, the Covid-19 pandemic has shone light on societal and economic systems across the world, exposing what some believe to be flaws of globalisation, the market economy and our high levels of interdependence.

IEA Research Director Professor Syed Kamall interviewed Professor David Henderson ([link removed]) – Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution and author of “Covid vs Capitalism” on whether the state – both here and in the US – could play a very different role in the economy long after this crisis has passed. Catch up here ([link removed]) .


** Your one-stop shop
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Monday to Saturday, IEA Da ([link removed]) ily ([link removed]) brings you the key stories of the day – plus the latest on all our online activities and recommendations on must-reads, must-listens and more.

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If you haven't yet subscribed, just click here ([link removed]) .


** Webinars of the week
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WHO’s to blame? Last Sunday, the IEA posted a webinar with Patrick Basham, Founding Director of the Democracy Institute, on our YouTube channel ([link removed]) . Patrick examined the performance of the World Health Organisation during the Covid-19 outbreak. With a budget of $2 billion, could it have done better? You can watch back on our YouTube channel ([link removed]) and to read Patrick Basham’s paper, the inspiration for this video, click here ([link removed]) .

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Covid-19 across Europe… Comparisons with other European countries have framed many analyses of the UK Government’s handling of the pandemic. What exactly are other countries getting right – and what can we learn?

Mark Littlewood was joined by leading think tank heads ([link removed]) from across Europe including Martin
Ågerup, President of CEPOS, Juan Ángel Soto, Director of Civismo and Jacob Lundberg, Chief Economist of TIMBRO, to discuss their countries’ responses to Covid-19, and debate the merits of policies and approaches being deployed. Catch up ([link removed]) on the discussion on the IEA YouTube channel ([link removed]) and do register for future events.

Today we posted a thought-provoking webinar ([link removed]) with Dr Nick Cowen on the wider implications that coronavirus may have on the criminal justice system. And later in the week we'll be adding a fascinating webinar with Rt Hon Sir Vince Cable, former Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills and Sam Bowman, Director of Competition Policy at the International Center for Law and Economics, on what the economic outlook looks like for the UK in the short and medium term. Sign up ([link removed]) to IEA Daily for updates.


** You're invited
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Remaking One Nation... On Tuesday 5th May from 6-7pm (BST), the IEA Book Club will be hosting a webinar with Nick Timothy CBE to discuss his latest book “Remaking One Nation: The Future of Conservatism”.

Nick Timothy served as Joint Downing Street Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Theresa May, until his resignation in the wake of the 2017 general election. As one of Britain's leading conservative thinkers and commentators, his latest book explores the powerful forces driving great changes in our economy, society and democracy. If you would like to attend, please register by following the link here ([link removed]) .

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Views from across the pond… News coverage of how the US is handling coronavirus can often be limited to the latest speech from Donald Trump. To address any lack of information and on-the-ground analysis, the IEA is bringing together three leading lights ([link removed]) from US think tanks to offer views from across the pond.

On Thursday 7th May, from 5-6pm, the IEA will host what promises to be a fascinating and informative debate with Ryan Bourne, Chair of Public Understanding of Economics at the Cato Institute, Joseph H Lehman, President of the Mackinac Centre and Dr Tom Palmer, Executive Vice President for International Programs at the Atlas Network.

If you would like to reserve a place, please register by following the link here ([link removed]) .


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