In the debate about how to deal with ongoing financial problems, many economists argue that the private sector, faced with … Continue reading “Government should focus on delivering higher quality services for less money”

With Britain currently fighting two wars, many commentators are claiming that the cuts in defence spending envisioned in the Strategic … Continue reading “Substantial cuts in the defence budget should be a priority”

‘Absolute bloody idiots’, ‘insane ramblings of an extremist group’, ‘this insanity belongs in the bin’, ‘makes me wonder what these … Continue reading “Sharper Axes, Lower Taxes: a response to the critics”

Traditionally the economic discussion of tax structure and public spending has looked at the impact on the economy’s efficiency in … Continue reading “Growth and taxes – the evidence”

Britain’s transport sector is cursed by endless intervention by politicians. Investment has tended to be driven by political priorities rather … Continue reading “Politicians should get out of the transport market – starting with High Speed 2”

I was disappointed, but hardly surprised, to see a lot of abusive web posts following the publication of Sharper Axes, … Continue reading “To be critical of wasteful public spending is not to be ideological”

In recent decades, the IEA has been in the vanguard of those advocating widespread privatisation. This stance bore fruit during … Continue reading “UK privatisation – proceeds of over £100 billion up for grabs”

Liberals who support a limited public safety net are faced with a dilemma. On the one hand, they want government … Continue reading “A smaller and better welfare state”

If you google the phrase ‘vicious public spending cuts’ you get 64,000 results from UK websites. Even if 32,000 of those are … Continue reading “Big steps to a smaller state”