When Boris Johnson became Prime Minister in July 2019, many free marketeers were cautiously optimistic that he would spearhead a new era of growth and prosperity, one underpinned by low taxes, regulatory reform and the primacy of personal freedom. Two and a half years, one pandemic, a cost of living crisis, and a new Prime […]
Since it was established over a century ago, the role of the Cabinet Office has historically been to manage the civil service and coordinate policy. Over the years, however, it has ballooned beyond all proportion with its fingers in every government pie. With no fewer than 13 ministers, its focus and structure shifts with the […]
‘Never let a good crisis go to waste’ – activists, academics and politicians from the left are channelling their inner Churchill to promote a post-pandemic world characterised by a bigger, bossier state and broader social objectives for businesses. But their visions of a new role for the state and the private sector would undermine prosperity […]
The golden rule of drug policy reporting in mainstream UK media is that it’s almost always nonsense. Leaked plans for a cannabis diversion scheme pilot in three London boroughs (Lewisham, Bexley and Greenwich) have provoked a typically hysterical response, with various outlets incorrectly stating that Sadiq Khan is going to decriminalise cannabis, ketamine and speed. […]
It was only a matter of time before we saw such a tragedy. Last Wednesday, at least 27 people, including a pregnant woman and a girl, drowned while attempting to reach Britain in the biggest single loss of life in the English Channel on record. This incident, and many others like it, was entirely avoidable. […]
Think broccoli pickers being paid £30 an hour is the sign of a healthy economy? Are you convinced that regularly queuing up for hours to fill your car with petrol is a tough but necessary step on the road to ‘levelling up’? Do you believe that supermarket shortages are in fact in our long-term economic […]
The Government has been repeatedly warned that their mad ad ban plan will hurt consumers and burden British businesses without making a dent in the obesity rate for adults or children. But they would rather listen to paternalist grifters than their own pitiful impact assessment (which shows the measures would result in a reduction of […]
In the midst of an election characterised by uncertainty and long delays, supporters of drug policy reform can take solace in the results of several ballot measures. With a potential Biden victory promising cannabis decriminalisation on a federal level, this could prove crucial in sparking similar efforts in the UK. Four states—Arizona, Montana, New Jersey […]
Four young people in or around Newcastle died over the weekend, with MDMA and ketamine suspected to have been involved. The latest ONS data available shows that drug-related deaths in England and Wales are at their highest level since records began in 1993, and the death rate in the north-east is particularly high. These tragedies […]
We’re in the midst of a global shortage in blood plasma. Blood plasma and products derived from it like Immune Globulin have a large and rapidly growing list of medical applications, ranging from hemophilia, sepsis and burn treatments to NHS-led coronavirus treatment trials. But demand for plasma therapies is growing at 6-10% a year and […]
Forget chlorinated chicken, if you want an example of a US import that actually presents a health threat, look no further than the spread of anti-vaping hysteria. According to a frustratingly popular narrative, e-cigarettes have caused an outbreak of lung injuries and deaths across the pond, so we Brits should be worried. Certainly, if you followed the […]
We’re in desperate need of a productivity boost. Over the last decade output per hour worked has grown at its slowest rate since the industrial revolution, at just 0.3% a year. Weekly wages have only just scraped above pre-crisis levels and we’ve had the lowest share of private investment in fixed capital in the G7 […]
If reports are to be believed, the Government is planning to do away with the £30,000 salary floor for skilled migrants. If so, it’s another welcome signal the Conservatives are shifting away from the economically damaging, poorly designed immigration policies of the May era. The notoriously ineffective ‘tens of thousands’ net migration target — which […]
Most Brits want to legalise recreational cannabis. Canada, ten US states and Uruguay have already taken this step, with other US states set to follow soon and New Zealand due to hold a referendum on the issue later this year. Taking money out of the hands of criminals and reducing children’s access to cannabis are […]
Those who support individual freedom used to be laughed at when we said tobacco plain packaging would set a terrible precedent, eventually leading to plain packaging for food, soft drinks, and alcohol. We were told the idea was ludicrous and this was just the paranoia of ‘ultra-libertarians’. Students for Liberty was so paranoid that they […]
If you think the Brexit debate is igniting public passions, just wait until people find out that the Government is about to block their porn from next month. The Digital Economy Act 2017 will force randy Brits to buy a porn pass from their newsagent or hand over their credit card details, passport information, or […]
