Mark Littlewood, IEA Director General, has written his fortnightly Times column on the Chancellor’s introduction of a tax on profits gained by North Sea oil and gas firms.

Mark argues that populist policies such as this carry dangerous implications and set a precedent of policy-making on the basis of political expediency, rather than rigorous economic analysis.

“The new windfall tax is unlikely to raise the revenues the chancellor is hoping for. Even if it does, it will have second and third-round effects on other parts of the economy that will hit government revenues, lower productivity and squeeze investment. Like previous similar efforts, it will cause damage that, after a few years, will require the policy to be abandoned.”

Read the full article here.