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November 2019

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Welcome to the IEA Weekend Newsletter!


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Hey big spenders

Yes we cannabis!

Saying no to anti-Americanism

What goes up...

Best of the Blog

You're Invited!
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** Hey big spenders
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On Thursday, the Labour Party launched their manifesto, proposing several new taxes - including a financial transactions tax, a windfall tax on oil companies, and hikes in corporation tax - along with the vast renationalisation of major industry, including rail, energy and water.

IEA spokespeople responded to the policy proposals in the manifesto, focusing in on the proposed tax increases, and plans to borrow hundreds of billions of pounds to fund new projects..

IEA Director General Mark Littlewood noted that “Labour’s combination of a high tax, big-state society – characterised by renationalisation of major industry – would be a strange step back into the dark ages of state controlled industrial strategy.”

Read our full press release here ([link removed]) , featuring comments from Mark, Academic and Research Director Syed Kamall, Head of Political Economy Dr Kristian Niemietz, Economics Fellow Julian Jessop and Editorial Fellow Prof Len Shackleton.

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IEA commentary featured across the media, including in The Daily Mail ([link removed]) , The Daily Telegraph ([link removed]) , The Times ([link removed]) and The Daily Express ([link removed]) .

Mark also penned an article for the Daily Telegraph ([link removed]) on Labour’s £75bn social housing plan.

Mark argued the only way the UK can deliver the number of homes demanded at an affordable price is to overhaul of our planning system and reduce (or fully eliminate) perverse property taxes such as stamp duty.

Read the full article here ([link removed]) .

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Meanwhile, Associate Director Kate Andrews wrote her weekly column ([link removed]) for City AM on Labour’s economic policy. Kate argued that Labour should know better than to recycle the same old tried and tested socialist ideology reminiscent of the Michael Foot era.

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As well, Emma Revell appeared on Sky News ([link removed]) to discuss her concerns about heavy borrowing to fund new public service promises, and Media Manager Emily Carver joined Mike Graham on TalkRadio to give her live reaction to Labour’s manifesto proposals.


** Yes we cannabis!
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Also this week, IEA spokespeople reacted to the Liberal Democrats’ manifesto, which included proposals to increase government childcare subsidies, to add a penny on income tax for the NHS, to legalise cannabis, and to give zero-hours workers on the minimum wage a 20% rise.

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To fund this spending, the Party claim the UK will benefit from a £50bn “remain bonus”.

Director General Mark Littlewood
disputed this, arguing that this fails to account for the “dynamic changes that could take place in our tax system and regulatory structures, creating the right conditions for an economic boom post-Brexit.”

Read our full response here ([link removed]) .

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However, Mark welcomed the Liberal Democrats’ pledge to legalise cannabis, noting that legalisation would not only allow safer, regulated cannabis to displace the more dangerous strains, but has been estimated to generate over £1bn extra tax revenue per year.

For more on cannabis legalisation, download our IEA report on cannabis legalisation here ([link removed]) .


** Saying no to anti-Americanism
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Fresh on the heels of last month’s suggestion ([link removed]) - that the IEA should delete books - comes a new invitation ([link removed]) from the Guardian newspaper, asking the IEA to agree that American support for advancing education about the institutions of a free society is deeply sinister and improper.

Following new requests for comment on a range of topics related to IEA funding, our Chief Operating Officer Andy Mayer took the Guardian's assertions to task on the blog this week ([link removed]) .

The notion of shadowy foreigners controlling British politics is not a new idea and it will not be a surprise to readers of this newsletter to learn we do not agree with the Guardian about their view of American support. We believe that the relationship between liberals and libertarians in the UK and US ​- in sharing ideas, people and resources ​- has been a powerful force for good in the world (often in ways of which Guardian readers will approve).

The IEA is a staunchly anti-racist organisation and we warmly welcome support from and dialogue with people of all nationalities (although we refuse to accept donations from state agencies).

It is certainly true that the IEA defends donor privacy, leaving disclosure decisions to the donor. This has been twisted by ‘no platform’ campaigners to imply that every donation not published on a website must be considered improper until proven proper. A curious approach to justice, which also has historical precedents in authoritarian regimes.

But the Guardian know all this – we’ve highlighted these arguments to them time and time again. It is very tedious, and this then our response ([link removed]) .

We invite the Guardian to consider whether allowing themselves to be fed a narrative which paints foreigners as a collective evil is a wise decision, in line with their wider and more noble principles.

And we leave it to you, the reader, to decide whether talking to foreigners about freedom and welcoming their support is a force for good or ill.

Read our full response here ([link removed]) .


** What goes up...
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This week on the IEA podcast ([link removed]) , Digital Manager Darren Grimes was joined by Economics Fellow Julian Jessop to discuss the Conservative and Labour parties’ proposals on corporation tax.

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Julian welcomes the efforts of both parties’ to tackle business rates, but argues the corporation tax system is increasingly out of date.

Julian brands the Conservative Party’s plan to postpone further cuts to corporation tax as a "mistake", and indeed the Labour Party’s pledge to reverse the cuts, arguing that both ignore research showing more than half the burden is borne by workers.

In this episode, Darren asks Julian to take him through his thinking on why he believes both parties’ proposals on corporation tax will fail to boost both investment and entrepreneurship.

Listen here ([link removed]) .

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts ([link removed]) , Spotify ([link removed]) and Podbean ([link removed]) .


** Best of the Blog
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This week on the IEA blog ([link removed]) , Berlin-based historian and sociologist Dr Rainer Zitelmann argues that anti-capitalists don’t care about the fate of the world’s poorest countries.

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Defending this claim, Dr Zitelmann argues that, while anti-capitalist activists have traditionally targeted their efforts towards helping the poorest around the world, today’s left-wingers are more interested in complaints about rising inequality and efforts to combat climate change, largely from the perspective of rich “First World” countries.

When it comes to climate change, Zitelmann notes how left-wing critics of capitalism conveniently ignore the fact that throughout the twentieth century, every system that was based on state planning not only failed economically, but led to environmental destruction far beyond the scale of any seen in capitalist countries.

Read the full blog here. ([link removed])


** You're Invited!
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In Conversation with the Rt. Hon Ruth Kelly ([link removed])

The IEA’s Research Director Syed Kamall and the former Head of Communications at 10 Downing Street and former BBC Westminster Editor Sir Robbie Gibb will be in conversation with Rt. Hon Ruth Kelly, former cabinet minister in the Blair governments.

The event is this week, 6pm - 8pm on Monday November 25th, in the Waldegrave Drawing Room at St Mary’s University, Twickenham.

For further details of the event and to register for a place, click here ([link removed]) .

Spontaneous Order: Language, Law and Liberty With Dr. Elaine Sternberg ([link removed])

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Spontaneous order is an extremely widespread phenomenon, crucial for understanding human institutions as fundamental as language and the law, morals, markets and money. It is also central to a key defense of individual liberty. But although the role of the ‘invisible hand’ is generally appreciated by economists, the operation of spontaneous order is seldom recognised by others, and is often misunderstood.

We are delighted to invite you to the Institute of Economic Affairs this Tuesday, 26 November at 6pm, where Elaine Sternberg will investigate this powerful notion, and unpack confusions that may result from it being characterised as ‘the result of human action, but not of human design’. She will also explore ways that spontaneous order might operate in often unsuspected arenas including academia and literature.

If you would like to attend, register above, or at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected])


Walls come tumbling down ([link removed])


This weekend marks the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

But what would have happened if the wall hadn’t come down? This fascinating premise will be discussed at a special event at the IEA later this month.

Join the IEA’s Head of Political Economy Dr. Kristian Niemietz and historians Roger Moorhouse and Giles Udy for what promises to be an intriguing discussion, chaired by IEA Academic and Research Director Professor Syed Kamall.

It will take place at the IEA on Thursday November 28th at 6pm - 8pm. To attend, email [email protected]

Kristian Niemietz is author of the fictional workThe Mirage of Democratic Socialism ([link removed]) which provided the inspiration for this upcoming panel discussion. You can read it here ([link removed]) .

He also authoredSocialism – The failed idea that never dies ([link removed]) , our most downloaded book of the year. Read ithere ([link removed]) .

RSVP: Hayek 2019 ([link removed])

There’s limited time left to secure your seat at our 2019 Hayek Memorial Lecture on 3rd December, to be given by acclaimed US author Professor Bryan Caplan.

Professor Caplan (whose book The Myth of the Rational Voter was hailed as the ‘best political book of the year’ by the New York Times) will scrutinise the role of governments and assess the impact of their policies on poverty.

If rich countries severely restrict immigration, does that prevent people from poor countries escaping their homeland’s bad economic policies? Do populist policies in poor countries deepen poverty? And where does individual behaviour come into the poverty equation?

These fascinating themes - and more - will be explored in Professor Caplan’s lecture, which takes place on 3rd December at  Church House, Westminster,  starting at  6.30pm. 


Bryan Caplan is Professor of Economics at George Mason University, Virginia.He’s also author of The Case Against Education and Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids. He’s featured in many publications - from the Wall Street Journal to the Washington Post - and appeared on ABC, BBC, Fox News and more.

Our thanks to CQS for their generous sponsorship of the lecture.

To secure your seat at this must-see event, RSVP [email protected] or call 020 7799 890

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