In the early stages of the lockdown, James Kirkup of the Social Market Foundation wrote an article posing the question: “Will the pandemic kill off libertarianism?”. The need for a lockdown, he argued, refuted – or at least seriously undermined – the libertarian view of human nature as benign and reasonable: “Libertarianism…suggests that when people […]
The announcement by Boris Johnson that pubs in England will be allowed to resume trading from July 4 was greeted with rousing cheers from some. But having a pint in the pandemic era will be slightly different. While two-metre social distancing rules are being relaxed to one metre to ensure economic viability for publicans, to […]
The coronavirus has shocked the British economy, no doubt about that. It will also be necessary to rebuild after the effects of both the disease and the lockdown. The problem is this vast number of people lining up to insist there must be a plan for what happens. Even, that the future cannot happen without […]
Many people suspect they’ve been infected with Covid-19 by now, despite the fact that only 0.5% of the UK’s population has actually been diagnosed with it. Similar numbers have been reported in other countries. Exactly how many people have actually had it, however, is unclear. There is also uncertainty around what proportion of people who […]
The Institute of Economic Affairs has just published a new Covid-19 Briefing that I have written on ‘Coronavirus and the Economic Value of Human Life’, or, as the sub-title puts it, ‘Is the lockdown worth it?’. The pandemic has provided many grim examples of some familiar problems in health economics and cost-benefit analysis, and of […]
A decade ago, Rupert Murdoch gave the first Margaret Thatcher Lecture for the Centre for Policy Studies. In his speech – delivered as Britain was struggling to cope with the aftermath of recession – he outlined how tempting it can be in tough times to retreat under the state’s security blanket: “In an anxious time, people […]
After weeks of Saturdays sat twiddling our thumbs in the living room, staring blankly at the TV and pining after Jeff Stelling, the wait is finally over. Football is back. But one thing that hasn’t returned is the 3pm blackout rule. Since the 1960s it has been illegal in the UK to broadcast live football […]
Back in 1946 Aneurin Bevan legislated for a National Health Service organised on the principle that when a “bedpan is dropped in a hospital corridor in Tredegar, the reverberations should echo around Whitehall”. Central government would deliver universal healthcare on the basis of need, not geography. This is what the Welshman meant when he pledged […]
In any crisis, people waste a great deal of energy trying to identify the “culprits”. In the United States right now, China is being blamed for the corona crisis while in Europe, highly vocal conspiracy theorists are turning their fire on Bill Gates. The fact is, in the entire history of humanity, no one has […]
Only a few short months ago, the UK labour market was having its best spell for decades – rising employment, high labour force participation and low unemployment. This was largely because, although there was arguably too much employment regulation, the labour market remained flexible, certainly much more so than in most of continental Europe. Today […]
In recent months, those in Government have been besieged by pleas for help. Industry after industry is queueing up for assistance, or outright rescue. On the face of it, the housebuilding industry would seem to be one of the lucky ones. The Government made sure to single out construction as an area that should keep […]
Ahead of the 2019 election, Boris Johnson’s Conservatives made moves to brand themselves as “post-austerity”. Big promises to rejuvenate neglected parts of the country won them votes in unexpected places. And now, as a government under pressure, the Conservatives must manage the economic aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic. As it lifts the lockdown, it needs […]
When consumers around the world realised the extent of the Covid-19 pandemic, many rushed to stock up on essentials in preparation for a long period of enforced isolation. Like other products, alcohol sales shot up and it wasn’t long before ‘public health’ campaigners were using the pandemic as an excuse to push for heavy regulation, […]
When Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron presented their roadmap for Europe’s post-Covid economic recovery last week, many were caught off guard. The German government, usually so sceptical of grand economic schemes – particularly if they don’t involve some promise of fiscal responsibility – suddenly agreed that a €500 billion Recovery Fund, including indirect debt collectivisation, […]
Whenever and however we come out of lockdown and are freed from Covid-19 controls, there is a simple reality. The influence and impact of government on the post-lockdown world will remain broader and deeper than most of us have ever witnessed. Government is bigger and bolder than ever before, with huge spending and unprecedented intervention. […]
The coronavirus crisis is a conspiracy. It’s the latest scheme concocted by Big Pharma in alliance with the Gates Foundation and the World Health Organisation to make money. This “circular cabal” are pushing vaccines on consumers, which damage health by weakening their immune systems. So far from shielding you, wearing a face mask “literally activates […]
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