IN THIS EDITION...
* TALKING POINT, WITH ADAM BARTHA
* IEA DIGITAL
* GO FOR GROWTH
* iN THE MEDIA
* TEACHER SEMINAR 2023

Book by book, conversation by conversation, we and our partners in over 100 countries are tirelessly building the foundations of free societies and reinvigorating the ideas of liberty across the world.

Despite their long history of classical liberal thought – as our Primer on the Islamic Foundations of Free Society ([link removed]) outlines – the Middle East and Africa are home to some nations where freedom faces significant economic and political obstacles. Many have large youth populations and high unemployment rates, and oppressive regimes which curtail the free exchange of ideas and goods.

Despite these tremendous challenges, our partners such as the Afghanistan Economic & Legal Studies Organization, National Influencers in Pakistan and the Arab Center are doing groundbreaking work to promote freedom.

Hand in hand with the Network for Free Society, a group connecting freedom-minded people across the world, continuing the legacy of our late Trustee Linda Whetstone, we give our partners the tools to continue their essential work. By providing them with IEA Primers and the resources to translate, print, and then discuss these ideas with hundreds of students, journalists, and policy makers, we contribute to building a more prosperous future for all in these regions.

Whether it’s the launch of Primer on Economic Inequality in Pakistan, a conference discussing our book on trade and globalisation in Nigeria, or organising seminars about entrepreneurship in Ghana, thousands of people across the world are encountering our ideas every day thanks to our partnerships across the globe.

If you would like to support free societies outside of the United Kingdom, don’t hesitate to reach out to our Development Director Angela Harbutt at [email protected].

Adam Bartha
Head of International Outreach, Institute of Economic Affairs

IEA DIGITAL

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Central bank independence... With inflation over 8 percentage points above the Bank of England's target, should its independence be reviewed?

IEA Academic and Research Director James Forder recently authored 'The Fallacies of Central Bank Independence' ([link removed]) for the Economic Affairs journal. In this video, James is interviewed on his paper by IEA Editorial and Research Fellow Professor Len Shackleton.

The interview can be watched here ([link removed]) and James' contribution can read here ([link removed]) .

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The challenge ahead... In the first of a series of videos from our most recent THiNK! conference, IEA Head of Education Dr Steve Davies outlines the future challenges that classical liberals face. Stay tuned for a series of fascinating videos featuring prominent economists and thought leaders!

Watch the lecture here ([link removed]) .

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Swift Half with Snowdon... In the first Swift Half of the new year, IEA Head of Lifestyle Economics Christopher Snowdon interviews author and commentator Marc Sidwell. They discuss the changing nature of leftism, the increasing power held by a small bureaucratic class and Marc's latest book, 'The Long March: How the left won the culture war and what to do about it', which can be bought here ([link removed]) .

Watch here ([link removed]) .

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IEA Podcast... Net neutrality is the EU-imposed rule that that internet service providers (ISPs)
should treat all web traffic equally. But, why is this damaging? In this week's podcast, IEA Head of Public Policy Matthew Lesh discusses this with Senior Vice President at Strand Consult and Senior Contributor to Forbes Magazine, Dr Roslyn Layton.

Watch here ([link removed]) .

GO FOR GROWTH

Earlier this month, the Prime Minister set out his five priorities and on Friday, the Chancellor gave us his four pillars – enterprise, education, employment and everywhere.

Our Head of Public Policy Matthew Lesh welcomed Hunt's rejection of the "doomsters and gloomsters," but warned that there's more to economic prosperity than "optimism and tinkering". Read his response to the speech here ([link removed]) .

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In The Daily Express ([link removed]) , Matthew pointed to recent polls suggesting a growing number of Leave voters now regret their decision, and urged government to embark on the regulatory reform needed to boost innovation, entrepreneurship and economic growth.

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Matthew made this case earlier in the week, in a piece for CapX ([link removed]) on the EU Retained Law Bill, which seeks to repeal or replace 3,800 articles of retained EU law. He wrote:

“The Retained EU Law Bill ends the supremacy of EU law over UK law, nullifies the general principles of EU law in UK law (including the precautionary principle), and gives UK courts greater freedom to depart from retained EU case law."

iN THE MEDIA

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Gauging up... In his fortnightly column for The Times ([link removed]) , IEA Director General Mark Littlewood argued that levelling-up should involve taking more power away from Westminster, rather than just more money. He wrote:

"The centralised decision-making process is certain to lead to a misallocation of resources. There will be things built that politicians will be able to point at during a photo opportunity and claim some credit for. What won’t be considered is what else the money could have been spent on. Having dozens of local projects that deliver some return is not the same as money being spent optimally."

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Sin bin... Have sugar taxes really prevented obesity, as Cambridge researchers this week suggested? Our Head of Lifestyle Economics Christopher Snowdon appeared on BBC Newsnight ([link removed]) to pour cold water on the idea that the soft drinks industry levy has slimmed the nation. He said:

"Consumers have lost over £1bn since the sugar tax came in, and obesity hasn't declined... Any fair minded reader would summarise this study by saying they didn't really find anything."

Watch the full interview here ([link removed]) (from 38m).

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Groundhog day... Christopher also wrote for CapX ([link removed]) criticising a Nesta report advocating a 10 per cent reduction in the calorie count of certain foods, saying:

"Public Health England (PHE) is dead but its terrible ideas live on. In 2015, PHE initiated a ruse in which it planned to remove 20 per cent of the sugar from most processed food... It didn’t quite work out like that. The food industry had to break it to PHE that you can’t take the sugar out of a cake or chocolate bar without compromising the size and texture, not to mention the taste."

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Subsidised darkness... IEA Energy Analyst Andy Mayer responded to the National Grid's offer of up to £10 for households who use less electricity on TalkTV ([link removed]) . Andy described the measure as "a terrible look for a country that's sitting on massive reserves of oil and gas," adding that "we are putting the nation's children's teatime on a rota system in order to keep the lights on."

Watch here ([link removed]) .

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Papa don't preach... And Matthew Lesh also appeared on TalkTV ([link removed]) to discuss the Archbishop of Canterbury's plea for government to raise taxes to fund social care. While sympathising with Justin Welby's concerns over our care system, Matthew questioned whether the NHS was really the model to replicate.

Watch here ([link removed]) .

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Lab-grown innovation... Matthew also wrote for City AM ([link removed]) on the environmental potential of lab-grown meat and the regulatory barriers blocking its progress, saying:

"The novel food regulations, retained in UK law after Brexit, embody the precautionary principle. As a result, it takes an average of 35 months and hundreds of thousands of pounds to get approval; it is unclear what is expected, and an application can be delayed indefinitely. This uncertainty risks sending British innovators away, to other jurisdictions."

The article follows Matthew's recent paper on the topic, which you can read here ([link removed]) .

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Hands off the hand-outs... In The Spectator ([link removed]) , IEA Economics Fellow Julian Jessop responded to Civitas research which found over half of UK households receive more in benefits than they contribute in tax. Contextualising the findings, Julian wrote:

"It is important to understand that the definition of ‘benefits’ here includes state education and healthcare, as well as cash payments such as Universal Credit and the state pension. The spike in government spending on health in response to the pandemic therefore also helps to explain the jump in the figure for 2020–21."

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Keep on trucking... Writing for CapX ([link removed]) , IEA Head of Political Economy Kristian Niemietz debunked some misconceptions about the pension system, writing:

“The purpose of a state pension system is not to redistribute from capital to labour, or from rich to poor. It may do a bit of that on the side, depending on how it is designed, and it may be complemented by a means-tested programme which does. But the main purpose of a pension system is intergenerational redistribution, not redistribution between social classes or income groups."

TEACHER SEMINAR 2023

On 8 February, we will be holding our 2023 Teacher Seminar with IEA Head of Education Dr Steve Davies. The topic will be 'Productivity and Secular Stagnation'.

The event will run from 9:45am-3pm, with lunch provided – though those unavailable to attend in person are welcome to join online. While it is aimed at A-level Economics teachers, all are welcome! To find out more and reserve your place, please contact [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .

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And a reminder that applications for our Future Thought Leader Programmes for sixth-formers and undergraduates are now open. There will be two weeks for sixth formers in April, and one in July. The undergraduate programmes will take place in July and August.

You can find out more information on the programmes and how to apply here ([link removed]) .

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