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ASI Bulletin: Trick or Treat ... don't tell the Nanny State!
This Halloween, enjoy a chocolate, sweet treat or even a drink - before the government regulates and taxes them out of existence altogether.
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IN THIS ASI BULLETIN
by Dr Eamonn Butler
New team members (and a very clever lot they are)
New poll — Yes, people really do hate the nanny state.
Research, events, blogs, videos and more!
But first…
It’s that time of year again. Halloween, where you go round getting free handouts from your neighbours. (Mind you, with our public spending levels, that happens every day.)
For a long time, the scariest Halloween costume was a Jeremy Corbyn mask, but this year it’s either a picture of the government front bench or a portable TV showing the News. Of course, Prime Minister Keir Starmer could simply dress up as a ghost, because now everyone can see through him anyway.
By next year, though, Halloween will be cancelled because Chancellor Angela Rayner will have found a way to tax it.
But I digress...
NEW TEAM MEMBERS
We are pleased to welcome Joanna Marchong as Head of Communications & External Affairs. After graduating from Durham University, Joanna worked as an Investigations Campaign Manager at the TaxPayers’ Alliance. She had earlier interned with the Civil Service but has now made a complete recovery.
And we are pleased to welcome Mitchell Palmer as an Economist. He has worked as a Ministerial Adviser to the New Zealand Deputy PM, advising on tax and prices policy. He holds a first-class degree in History and Economics from New College, Oxford (they call it ’New College’ because it was founded as late as 1378).
BTW, Mitchell tells me that the scariest thing this Halloween is likely to be the energy bill that lands on the doormat.
RESEARCH
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Partnering with the Tax Foundation, we uncovered just how broken the UK’s tax system is. In tax competitiveness, the UK now ranks 32nd out of 38 OECD countries. Our property taxes are six times the OECD average. And our low capital allowances for industrial buildings discourage new development—contrary to the government’s ‘growth’ ambitions.
Nor does it stop there. As our own analysis of the Tax Foundation’s International Tax Competitiveness data shows, the UK has the second-lowest rate of fixed capital formation in the OECD, because of our high taxes and dysfunctional 1947 planning system. So let’s abolish stamp duty land tax, reform council tax and business rates, and take a pruning knife to the planning blockages.
POLLING
Brits Hate the Nanny State
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Our latest opinion poll finds that a huge majority of Brits want less official meddling in their lives. Some 59% say the government has too much control of their health and lifestyle choices, while a staggering 77% say they trust their own decisions better than those of MPs and officials. People think those nannies would be better to focus their minds on the cost of living.
IN THE MEDIA
As always, we’ve been making waves in the media.
Our Nanny State polling was picked up in The Sun, City AM and Guido Fawkes. Emma Schubart also penned an op-ed reflecting on the findings in The Critic. Our Tax Competitiveness research was in The Express with Mitchell Palmer appearing in City AM, outlining why UK property taxes are so damaging.
With Stamp Duty back in the news, we’ve been in The Telegraph and The Mail, while our Motability research continues to make an impact - appearing in The Times, The Financial Times and The Independent (to name a few).
And, Gary Stevenson’s surprise appearance at our Annual Ayn Rand Lecture made it into Politico (the event was also covered in Cap X and The Times Diary).
The 250th Anniversary of The Wealth of Nations is next year! If you'd like to help us celebrate, please consider donating by clicking the link below.
UPCOMING EVENTS
The Next Generation with Rachel Gilmour MP
On Tuesday 4th November, we’re thrilled to welcome Rachel Gilmour MP, Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Tiverton and Minehead. Formerly Director of Communications at the National Farmers’ Union and Head of Strategy at the Environment Agency, Rachel entered the House of Commons in 2024 and is Vice-Chair of the Rural Business and the Rural Powerhouse APPG. She’s here to bang the liberal drum against authoritarianism, with style—so come along!
The Next Generation with Hugo Gye
For our December TNG, we’re delighted to be joined by Hugo Gye, Political Editor of The i Paper. A veritable heavyweight of the Westminster journalism scene, his muckraking has taken him through institutions like the MailOnline, the Sun, and now The i. He was Chairman of the Parliamentary Lobby Journalists (as his X banner lovingly displays) in 2023. He’s here to chat with us about life as a political journalist over wine and gossip; join in!
OTHER NEWS
Enlightenment Evening: How Progress Ends
On Thursday, October 30th, we hosted Professor Carl-Benedikt Frey for a discussion centred on the implementation of technology, innovation, and progress studies. The evening focused on his new book, How Progress Ends: Technology, Innovation and the Fate of Nations.
Ayn Rand Lecture 2025: Lance Forman
Our annual Ayn Rand Lecture last week featured businessman and commentator Lance Forman, former MEP and the 4th generation head of H. Forman and Son, London’s leading salmon smokery. He outlined his battle with the government after it tried to compulsorily purchase his business, before broadening the discussion to the role of the state in British public life.
Enlightenment Evening: False Dawn - Whither The New Deal?
Monetary expert Professor George Selgin swung by on 2nd October to give his assessment of the Great Depression, the New Deal, and current economic policy.
The Next Generation with Claire Coutinho MP
Recently we hosted Rt. Hon Claire Coutinho, the Shadow Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Isn’t she against net zerp?—Ed.) She spoke about energy (natch) and how to reduce the UK’s £££-per-MW-hour to help the sputtering economy.
Conservative Party Conference 2025: Rally For Liberty
We went to the Conservative Party Conference to make the case for freedom (Someone had to—Ed.) at our Rally For Liberty. The event showed how civil liberties in the UK are under threat, with speech being criminalized, meritocracy subordinated to identity politics, and personal responsibility on the back foot.
The spectre of Boris Johnson, BTW, still haunts the Conservative Party. But they still blame his spirits for the mess they’re in. Come to think of it, he could be very scary going to the Tories’ Halloween Ball as himself.
ASI ONLINE
On our super blog!
Time to Revive the Elden League, says Madsen Pirie
Another Outbreak of First Wife Syndrome, writes Tim Worstall
New videos!
The Annual Ayn Rand Lecture 2025: Lance Forman on corruption, red tape and the London Olympics
What actually caused (and fixed) the Great Depression?
Rally for Liberty
AND I QUOTE
That’s it, then—eat, drink and be scary. I think it was Stephen King who wrote that we make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones, which seems appropriate to our times. Or as Vincent Price told us in the Thriller! video, Darkness falls across the land, the midnight hour is close at hand. (With our electricity prices, I think the darkness is going to be pretty permanent).
Bye,
e
Dr Eamonn Butler
Adam Smith Institute
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