IEA Past Events

As part of the economic regeneration of a failing town centre, Poynton has introduced a pioneering traffic scheme. Freed of standard traffic controls, the sociable streetscape stimulates peaceful coexistence among all road-users. A short film, Poynton Regenerated, shows how the project came to fruition. Already the community is benefiting from less congestion, a transformation in (more…)

Market failure is one of the most widespread and influential ideas in contemporary economics. Not only that, it is perhaps the most important reason now given for expanding the role of government. Market failure, properly understood, exists in many contexts other than markets. It is a reason why a free market will not always produce (more…)

An Evening Panel Discussion Speakers include: Prof Tim Congdon CBE, Chief Executive, International Monetary Research Ltd; Martin Howe QC, 8 New Square, Lincoln’s Inn; Mats Persson, Director, Open Europe; John Stevens, Former MEP; and Gisela Stuart, Labour MP for Birmingham Edgbaston Over the next few months, the IEA will be having a series of panel (more…)

A panel discussion featuring: Richard Diment, former Director, British Road Federation Jonathan Dupont, co-author of Gridlock Nation John Hoad, Head of Planning, Campaign to Protect Rural England Dr Oliver Knipping, President, Institute for Free Enterprise Dr Richard Wellings, Head of Transport, Institute of Economic Affairs Despite high levels of congestion, investment in new road capacity has (more…)

Frédéric Bastiat was a pivotal figure in French classical liberalism in the mid-19th century. He suddenly emerged from the south west province of Les Landes to assume leadership of the fledgling French free trade movement in 1844 which he modelled on that of Richard Cobden’s Anti-Corn Law League in England. Bastiat then turned to a (more…)

Americans went to the polls on 6 November to choose not only a President, but also to determine control of the Senate and House of Representatives. Their choices will have a major impact on global economic performance. Will the United States continue to over-spend, incurring trillion dollar deficits? Will there be sweeping entitlement reform? Or (more…)

Speaker: Michael Pollitt, Assistant Director, Electricity Policy Research Group Chair and Commentator: Tim Tutton, Former UK Director of Regulation, National Grid How can EMR work? This lecture will examine the theoretical and empirical rationale for EMR, look at the evidence for each of the four measures, examine the potential benefit to society, and outline what (more…)

Friedrich Hayek is an outline of the life and work of the great Nobel economist, social theorist and scourge of socialism, whose ideas influence Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan, and helped change the course of history. Hayek was the 20th Century’s leading critic of Keynes – correctly forecasting that Keynes’s policies would lead to inflation, unemployment (more…)

Speaker: Richard Price, Chief Executive Officer, Office of Rail Regulation Chair and Commentator: Adrian Shooter, Former Chairman, Chiltern Railways Following the McNulty report, the rail industry is under increased pressure to improve efficiency. This lecture will cover ways of making the railways more self-sustaining, evaluating to what extent rail can learn from other regulated sectors, (more…)

The seminars hosted by Ludwig von Mises, first in Vienna and later in New York, have a key place in the history and development of Austrian economics. Such figures as Hayek, Rothbard, and Hazlitt all attended. Inspired by this the London Mises Circle is holding a seminar at the Institute of Economic Affairs at 6:30pm on (more…)