Steve Gordon, Author at Institute of Economic Affairs

Prohibitions create black markets and cause violent crime

Jay Stooksberry

10 August 2016

Lifestyle Economics

Prohibitions create black markets and cause violent crime

Every December 5th, American beer, wine, and spirit enthusiasts celebrate Repeal Day. It was on this day in 1933 that the United States officially passed the 21st Amendment, effectively ending the failed “noble experiment” known as Prohibition. This was not only a good day for liberty and libations; it also marked the end of a ... Continue reading

Jay Stooksberry

10 August 2016

Why do politicians think they can plan for migration better than anything else?

Ryan Bourne

9 August 2016

Trade, Development, and Immigration

Why do politicians think they can plan for migration better than anything else?

A large number of MPs seem to believe that net inflows of 330,000 people per year into Britain are “too high”. What, then, is the optimal annual number of net migrants? Up until recently, the Conservatives said “tens of thousands” should be the aim. What’s not entirely clear is why they felt they had the ... Continue reading

Ryan Bourne

9 August 2016

1 Comment

The EEA option for Brexit: a stepping stone in choppy waters

Ben Kelly

8 August 2016

Trade, Development, and Immigration

The EEA option for Brexit: a stepping stone in choppy waters

While the Government slowly prepares itself for the daunting task ahead, a climate of uncertainty is fuelling a Remain movement determined to stop Brexit. In this they are aided and abetted by uncompromising Leavers who refuse to understand and acknowledge that leaving the EU is going to be very complicated and difficult. As a committed ... Continue reading

Ben Kelly

8 August 2016

10 Comments

We are the 6.6%! Why everybody is wrong on rent controls

Kristian Niemietz

5 August 2016

Housing and Planning

We are the 6.6%! Why everybody is wrong on rent controls

The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has recently published the paper ‘How to repair the housing market quickly – A crisis response’, which makes the case for a (re-)introduction of rent controls. It includes a Survation poll which shows that there is indeed overwhelming popular support for such a policy: Only 6.6% of the public are ... Continue reading

Kristian Niemietz

5 August 2016

11 Comments

Can capitalism be ‘green’?

Christopher J. Coyne and Rachel L. Coyne

4 August 2016

Markets and Morality

Can capitalism be ‘green’?

“Capitalism v environment: can greed ever be green?” This headline from The Guardian captures the standard view of the relationship between capitalism and the environment. According to this view, capitalism and the environment are necessarily at odds with one another. The only way for people to earn a profit, the logic goes, is to exploit ... Continue reading

Christopher J. Coyne and Rachel L. Coyne

4 August 2016

Post-Brexit – a tax policy for a globalised economy

Richard Teather

3 August 2016

Tax and Fiscal Policy

Post-Brexit – a tax policy for a globalised economy

In an earlier blog post I looked at some of the tax reforms that could help reposition the UK as a dynamic economy, open to growth and innovation. Those reforms were primarily directed at the domestic economy, but equally important in the post-Brexit world is our position in the global economy, showing that Britain is ... Continue reading

Richard Teather

3 August 2016

1 Comment

Ros Altmann is right: It’s time to scrap the state pension triple-lock

Ryan Bourne

2 August 2016

Welfare

Ros Altmann is right: It’s time to scrap the state pension triple-lock

As with many contemporary policy debates, the furore over the state pension triple-lock has its roots with Gordon Brown. Back in 1999, when Brown was chancellor, the state pension was increased by 75p per week. “Derisory”, claimed pensioner groups. Only “enough to buy a packet of peanuts”, bemoaned national newspapers. Scarred by the backlash, political ... Continue reading

Ryan Bourne

2 August 2016

The third runway: urgent but not vital

David Starkie

1 August 2016

Transport

The third runway: urgent but not vital

In mid-July the UK’s National Audit Office (NAO) suggested that the Government might have to pause some big infrastructure schemes: the agenda of big projects was crowded and probably more than the public sector could deliver efficiently in a post-Brexit world. In response, there was a predictable outcry from the construction industry in particular, but ... Continue reading

David Starkie

1 August 2016

3 Comments

Hammond should ignore siren calls for more fiscal stimulus and develop a real strategy for growth

Ryan Bourne

29 July 2016

Tax and Fiscal Policy

Hammond should ignore siren calls for more fiscal stimulus and develop a real strategy for growth

A question, readers. Who said “spending and borrowing our way out of a recession, over and above the levels that are implied by the automatic stabilisers… will not work and is not sustainable”? Clue: he’s now Chancellor of the Exchequer. Philip Hammond once believed that Keynesian demand management was a fool’s errand. Just two weeks into his ... Continue reading

Ryan Bourne

29 July 2016

2 Comments

The myth of Britain’s ‘deregulated’ labour market

Len Shackleton

28 July 2016

Labour Market

The myth of Britain’s ‘deregulated’ labour market

It is a constantly-reiterated view on the Left that the Conservatives are hell-bent on attacking employment rights and deregulating the labour market. We were warned during the referendum debate by the TUC, for example, that only the EU could guarantee paid holidays and parental leave and equality for part-time workers. This flies against the evidence ... Continue reading

Len Shackleton

28 July 2016

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