From Institute of Economic Affairs <[email protected]>
Subject Balancing the books
Date November 15, 2020 8:59 AM
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* TALKING POINT, BY DR KRISTIAN NIEMIETZ
* BALANCING THE BOOKS
* JUNK FOOD CRUSADE
* NEW 'IN CONVERSATION' SERIES
* YOU'RE INVITED

Lockdown or not, the Atlas Network’s Liberty Forum ([link removed]) – an annual conference which brings together liberty-minded people from around the world – had to happen, albeit mostly virtually this time. At least we were not short on topics.

I took part in the panel "Healthcare and the Pandemic Response: What We Have Learned? ([link removed]) ", with Dr Jeffrey Singer from the CATO Institute and Dr Bobbi Herzberg from George Mason University. We talked about the relevant lessons from the first Covid wave, about the challenge of identifying and learning from international best practice, and about the various trade-offs involved in devising a pandemic response strategic.

Needless to say, we also talked about the medium- to long-term implications for economic and personal freedom. Our Director-General Mark Littlewood also chaired an enjoyable discussion on the global post-pandemic economic recovery.

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Our Danish sister think tank, the Center for Political Studies (CEPOS), also went ahead with their annual Freedom Conference ([link removed]) . I gave a talk entitled "Socialism: The Perennial Threat to Freedom ([link removed]) ", updating and building on my earlier work ([link removed]) on the rise of "Millennial Socialism". I argued that socialism had not just become a fashionable youth movement in its own right, but that it was also coopting and absorbing other fashionable social movements, the latest examples being Black Lives Matter and Extinction Rebellion.

Our schools conference programme has managed the transition into the Zoom Age rather well. I spoke at an IEA 6^th form conference for Loretto School, outlining how different healthcare models work, and explaining the challenges of tackling market failure without simply replacing it with government failure.

This week marked the anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. You could be forgiven for thinking that today, 31 years on, nobody (apart from a few irrelevant sectarian fringe groups) would defend the East German regime. You would be wrong. Jacobin, a hip and trendy socialist magazine which attracts more than 2 million readers each month, used the occasion to do precisely that ([link removed]) . I could, of course, not resist writing a rebuttal ([link removed]) .

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For Westerners such as myself, socialism-vs-capitalism debates are an interesting academic exercise, but so far, they are is just that: it does not (yet) affect us directly. In the latest episode of the IEA podcast ([link removed]) , my colleague Emma Revell and I were joined by two of our current interns, for whom socialism is, or was once, part of their daily life: Jesus Armas, a Venezuelan politician and activist, and Roberto White, a British-Venezuelan student. Interestingly, even though we approached the topic from different angles, we ultimately ended up in the same place.

Dr Kristian Niemietz
Head of Political Economy, Institute of Economic Affairs
BALANCING THE BOOKS

With a vaccine on the horizon, there is a sense of cautious optimism that, maybe just maybe, a return to normality is in sight. However, after months of lockdown and other restrictions on activity, the pandemic has taken a devastating toll on the nation’s finances. This week, the IEA turned its attention to how we might begin to rebalance the books.

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IEA Director General Mark Littlewood chaired a panel discussion on the Resolution Foundation’s proposed £40bn tax hike, which you can watch here ([link removed]) . Mark argued that "spending restrictions will have to be the way forward," while Tom Clougherty, Head of Tax at the Centre for Policy Studies, said we should focus on "shifting the composition of the tax burden" to boost economic growth, as there is very little political will to lower taxes. Duncan Simpson of the TaxPayers' Alliance and Matthew Lesh of the Adam Smith Institute also gave their views.

Responding to proposals by the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) to align Capital Gains Tax (CGT) rates with income tax, Senior Academic Fellow Professor Philip Booth this week argued ([link removed]) that raising rates would be "a serious mistake" and create more economic damage down the line. His comments were quoted in The Times ([link removed]) .

Meanwhile, IEA Economics Fellow Julian Jessop welcomed the news ([link removed]) that GDP grew by a record 15.5 per cent in the last quarter, but warned against hiking taxes to ‘pay for Covid’. Instead, he argued, we should focus on "growth-supporting measures, including tax simplification, cuts, and further deregulation".

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On similar theme, Mark debated how best to go for growth post-Covid with economist and author John Mills, hosted by Jim McConalogue of the Civitas think tank. You can catch up here ([link removed]) .

Elsewhere, a new paper from TIMBRO, our Swedish sister think tank, has found that economically free societies experience fewer and not as deep and long-lasting crises as more regulated societies do. You can read the report, authored by new IEA trustee Christian Bjørnskov, Professor of Economics at Aarhus University, here ([link removed]) .

Christian also took part in this week's episode of Live with Littlewood, joining another stellar panel of guests including author and journalist Lionel Shriver, Science Editor at The Times Tom Whipple and The Sun's Olivia Utley. Catch up on the show here ([link removed]) .
JUNK FOOD CRUSADE

Considering Public Health England’s (PHE) performance during this pandemic, one might expect supporters of nanny statism to push for renewed focus on protecting the public from infectious diseases. Alas, as IEA Director of Communications Annabel Denham pointed out in an article for Spiked, the pandemic has in fact "triggered renewed fervour among nanny-state obsessives".

The latest government proposals include an online "junk food" advertising ban on food considered high in fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) and are part of PHE's food reformulation programmes. This, as the IEA's Head of Lifestyle Economics Christopher Snowdon told the Daily Mail ([link removed]) , would cover such everyday items as jam, yoghurt, Cornish pasties and mustard, and will include all forms of online advertising – at any time, day or night. You can read his full comment here ([link removed]) .

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Christopher also spoke to Times Radio and talkRadio ([link removed]) about the proposals which are up for further public consultation. He argued that this "ill-considered" policy would "permanently exclude businesses large and small from the primary marketing medium of our time," while having "no impact on obesity".
If you’re interested in what food and drink might be affected by such a ban, read Christopher's IEA briefing ‘What is Junk Food?’ here ([link removed]) .
NEW 'IN CONVERSATION' SERIES

The IEA is delighted to announce a new series of ‘In Conversation’ events with senior figures from public life. Beginning in late November and running into the new year, the series will provide insight into the life and careers of some of today’s most interesting and prominent people, both inside Westminster and beyond.

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The series – which will be livestreamed on the IEA YouTube channel ([link removed]) – kicks off on Tuesday 30th November at 6pm when IEA Director General Mark Littlewood will sit down with Sir Graham Brady MP. As Chair of the 1922 Committee of backbench Conservative MPs, Sir Graham has been an outspoken critic of Coronavirus restrictions, making the case for parliamentary oversight and defence of our civil liberties.

The following week Mark will speak to Linda Whetstone, daughter of IEA co-founder Sir Anthony Fisher, to discuss her lifelong career promoting freedom across the globe. Linda will speak about her work reaching out to freedom-minded individuals and groups internationally, including helping translate publications from think tanks like the IEA into numerous languages so everyone can access the ideas and research we pioneer.

In January, Professor Syed Kamall, IEA Academic and Research Director, will host the Rt Hon Baroness Morgan of Cotes. More speakers will be confirmed in the coming weeks so do keep an eye on our website ([link removed]) and social media pages for upcoming events.

The events will be streamed live here ([link removed]) , here ([link removed]) and here ([link removed]) .
YOU'RE INVITED

* Last orders? The Future of UK Hospitality

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What could the second lockdown mean for the UK’s 50,000 pubs? How will these new restrictions impact an already beleaguered industry? Have the unintended consequences of these measures been considered?

On Thursday 19th November at 6.30pm, the IEA will host a webinar on the future of our hospitality sector. Join us to discuss these issues and more.

The event will be chaired by the IEA's Head of Lifestyle Economics Christopher Snowdon, who will be joined by JD Wetherspoon Chairman Tim Martin, Corporate Relations Director at Diageo Dan Mobley and Dehenna Davison, Conservative Member of Parliament for Bishop Auckland. The discussion will be live-streamed on the IEA's YouTube channel here ([link removed]) .

* IEA Book Club Webinar: Iain Dale on 'The Prime Ministers: 55 Leaders, 55 Authors, 300 Years of Leadership'

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On Monday 23rd November at 12.30pm, the IEA Book Club will be hosting a webinar with renowned British broadcaster, political commentator and author, Iain Dale, who will be discussing his latest book 'The Prime Ministers: 55 Leaders, 55 Authors, 300 Years of Leadership'. The event will be chaired by IEA Director General Mark Littlewood.

This event will be recorded on Zoom and live streamed onto the IEA's YouTube channel. However IEA Book Club members will be invited to join the exclusive Zoom call and participate in the Q&A with Mark and Iain. If you would like to find out more information about the IEA Book Club, please contact us at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .

* IEA Webinar: Is there a doctor in the house? Plugging the gaps in NHS staffing

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The NHS is facing an impending staffing crisis owing to a shortage of doctors. Mark Tovey, the author of a recent IEA report ([link removed]) titled "Is there a doctor in the house?", fears the NHS may be "sleepwalking into a perfect storm" and offers three simple solutions to this looming crisis. Will this be enough, or is more system-wide reform needed?

On Tuesday 24th November at 6pm, the IEA will host an webinar with Mark Tovey, Paul Bristow, Conservative Member of Parliament for Peterborough and member of the Health Select Committee, and Dr Kristian Niemietz, IEA Head of Political Economy and author of “ ([link removed]) Universal Healthcare Without the NHS” ([link removed]) .

You can register for the event here ([link removed]) .

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