Search results for ""Institute of Economic Affairs""

In Saving Our Streams, Roger Bate explains the history of an unusual and remarkably effective 'environmental' organisation - the Anglers' Conservation Association (ACA). Founded in 1948, the ACA is a voluntary association of angling clubs and individual anglers which brings civil suits against polluters who harm fishing. Dr Bate's original and instructive history explores how the ACA, using the common law, has operated to indemnify its members against the cost of litigation, bringing thousands of actions and being awarded hundreds of injunctions and millions of pounds in damages for plaintiffs. Most cases end in out-of-court settlement which, though efficient, brings little public recognition to the ACA. The ACA has not sought the limelight, unlike other environmental groups, but, argues Dr Bate, it is the most efficient and determined pollution prevention body in Britain. Its success demonstrates the value of private initiatives against polluters.

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A New Trading Agenda for the Age of Globalisation. At a time when public opposition to joining the euro is increasing and a debate is emerging about the long term costs and benefits of Britain's membership of the EU, this paper presents a timely solution to Britain's somewhat strained relationship with the EU. Dr John C Hulsman, a senior policy analyst at the Washington-based Heritage Foundation, presents a compelling case for the advancement of Britain's trade interests through UK participation in a global free trade association. This would permit Britain to gain the benefits of freer trade whilst avoiding a constant battle with EU partners over ever-closer integration. To move the debate forward, and in particular to test whether or not Dr Hulsman's proposal is viable, the IEA asked four well-known writers on European issues to analyse the paper and write commentaries. These are followed by a response by Dr Hulsman. All the commentators are generally supportive of the Hulsman idea, though they offer a variety of critiques. This publication is timely and highly readable, and stands out in the discussions about Britain's relationship with the EU, not only by raising issues of real substance, but by providing positive suggestions about a way out of the confused and quarrelsome state into which that relationship appears to have lapsed.

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Professor Paul Collier argues that the prospects for growth and stability in Africa would be enhanced if the concern about policy reversals were diminished, thus maximising inward investment flows. He advocates the EU taking a wider role and exerting more pressure on recalcitrant regimes.

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This original piece of research examines the teaching of environmental issues in the UK and US. Looking at a variety of textbooks and how specific issues are taught, they find that the teaching of the environment is characterised by bad science, sloppy thinking and indoctrination.

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Economic historian Professor Nick Crafts gives a wide-ranging assessment of the economic record of the recent Conservative Government.

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Eleven years after the first utility privatisation, the agenda has moved from whether privatisation will do better than its state predecessor to the question of how to do better with privatisation. The future of regulation seems very uncertain. The stakeholders consumers, politicians, the companies themselves and their shareholders are increasingly critical. Regulatory processes have borne the brunt of criticism. Conflicting remedies are suggested for the problems which have arisen. Should there be more competition? Should regulators' powers be increased and perhaps widened? Should some of their Offices be amalgamated? Should the respective powers of the Office of Fair Trading and the Monopolies and Mergers Commission be reconsidered? Should government become more involved in regulation? Each year the IEA, in association with the London Business School, publishes a volume of Readings which provides an up-to-date assessment of the state of utility regulation. In this, the latest in the series, the regulators themselves discuss the problems they face and leading commentators assess the regulators' contributions. The result is a wealth of detail about utility regulation in Britain where it is now and where it may be going.

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The author explains why government and bureaucratic attempts at environmental protection have failed and argues that to safeguard the countryside we need to restore private property rights.

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Now that privatisation of utilities is substantially complete, regulation has become a major economic and political issue. To provide an intellectual basis for utility regulation, each year the Institute in conjunction with the London Business School publishes a set of Readings which assess the state of regulation, considers the state of regulation, considers what problems have arisen, and discusses how they might be solved, taking into account the experiences of other countries. The authors adopt no common political or ideological stance: they bring a variety of viewpoints to bear since the intentions is to stimulate debate. The 1996 edition of this comprehensive and up-to-date review of utility regulation in Britain includes contributions not only from academic commentators but from the utility regulators and the heads of the general competition authorities.

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CONTENTS: The Lessons of History; Stages of European Integration; The Role of Monetary Policy in the Integration Process; Common Currency as Pace-Setter for Political Union; The Labour Market & Social Union; Compensatory transfers; Possible Political Tensions; Institutional Arrangements & 'Good Money from Outside'; The Difficulties & Risks of Monetary Union; Barriers Against Deficits & Debts; Constitutional restraints; Ambivalence of the Political Union; Summary.

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This is a condensed edition of 'The Road to Serfdom' republished in this edition with 'The Intellectuals and Socialism' (originally published in 1949). In 'The Road to Serfdom' F. A. Hayek set out the danger posed to freedom by attempts to apply the principles of wartime economic and social planning to the problems of peacetime. Hayek argued that the rise of Nazism was not due to any character failure on the part of the German people, but was a consequence of the socialist ideas that had gained common currency in Germany in the decades preceding the outbreak of war. Such ideas, Hayek argued, were now becoming similarly accepted in Britain and the USA. On its publication in 1944, 'The Road to Serfdom' caused a sensation. Its publishers could not keep up with demand, owing to wartime paper rationing. Then, in April 1945, Reader's Digest published a condensed version of the book and Hayek's work found a mass audience. This condensed edition was republished for the first time by the IEA in 1999. Since then it has been frequently reprinted. There is an enduring demand for Hayek's relevant and accessible message. The 'Road to Serfdom' is republished in this impression with 'The Intellectuals and Socialism' originally published in 1949, in which Hayek explained the appeal of socialist ideas to intellectuals - the 'second-hand dealers in ideas'. Intellectuals, Hayek argued, are attracted to socialism because it involves the rational application of the intellect to the organisation of society, while its utopianism captures their imagination and satisfies their desire to make the world submit to their own design.

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This book deals with myths about the market economy - such as the idea that economists believe that everybody is greedy. Christopher Snowdon, carefully and entertainingly unpicks the misguided ideas that have taken hold. Essential reading for all who wish to separate fact from fiction when it comes to understanding economic reasoning and evidence.

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This tightly argued paper asks two fundamental questions about the nature of higher education in this country. Does Britain provide too much higher education, and are the current funding mechanisms fair and efficient? Lange's answers to these questions are controversial, but make a timely contribution to this on-going debate.

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The Mont Pelerin Society is an august, admired, yet strangely enigmatic organisation. Perhaps that's because it holds no official views, formulates no policies and publishes no manifestos. Or because it doesn't publicise the results of its discussions - and doesn't even seek agreement among its members. So why does this singularly low-profile organisation attract distinctly high-profile members - including distinguished politicians, Pulitzer Prize-winning writers and journalists and Nobel Prize-winning economists? Perhaps because, for three quarters of a century, it has played a crucial role in the battle of ideas - expanding and deepening liberal philosophy and spreading liberal thought around the world. In Scaling the Heights, Eamonn Butler traces the history of the Mont Pelerin Society. He tracks its formation in the wake of World War II, explores its many internal debates about how 'activist' it should become and explains how it has come to provide a unique forum for debate, discussion, study and self-education. But, above all, he celebrates a Society that, for 75 years, has remained unwaveringly true to its initial vision: to bring together individuals who seek to defend, support and promote liberal values - and to keep the intellectual flame of liberalism burning brightly across the globe.

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Transactions have always taken place. For hundreds of years that ‘place’ was a market or, more recently, a shopping mall. But in the past two decades these physical locations have increasingly been replaced by their virtual counterparts – online platforms. Here, author Michael C. Munger demonstrates how these platforms act as matchmakers or middlemen, a role traders have adopted since the very first exchanges thousands of years ago. The difference today is that the matchmakers often play no direct part in buying or selling anything – they just help buyers and sellers find each other. Their major contribution has been to reduce the costs of organising and completing purchases, rentals or exchanges. The Sharing Economy: Its Pitfalls and Promises contends that the key role of online platforms is to create reductions in transaction costs and it highlights the importance of three ‘Ts’ - triangulation, transfer and trust – in bringing down those costs.

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Economists and economics have been harshly criticised recently. This book accepts many of the criticisms of conventional theory but argues that the fundamental insights of economics are capable of reinterpretation and reinvention to deal with a host of contemporary concerns – social networks, globalisation, pay inequality, climate change, automation and the growth of `nudge’ policy amongst many others. The author uses his weekly column in the London business newspaper City A.M. to explain new developments in economic thinking and empirical research to a general audience. This book reproduces many of his most provocative columns with accompanying commentary and full references. The author’s witty and informed analysis of events provides an ideal introduction to important ideas for anybody interested in how the modern economy works.

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The British National Health Service remains the sacred cow of British politics - any criticism is considered beyond the pale, guaranteed to trigger angry responses and accusations of bad faith. This book argues that the NHS should not be insulated from reasoned debate. In terms of health outcomes, it is one of the worst systems in the developed world, well behind those of other high-income countries. The NHS does achieve universal access to healthcare, but so do the health systems in every other developed country (with the exception of the US). Britain is far from being the only country where access to healthcare does not depend on an individual's ability to pay. Author Kristian Niemietz draws on a wealth of international evidence to develop a vision for a universal healthcare system based on consumer sovereignty, freedom of choice, competition and pluralism. His roadmap for reform charts a path from the status quo to a more desirable and effective alternative.

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This book makes a persuasive argument that the licence fee is no longer the right way to raise revenue for the BBC. While there was a case for this model when the only way to watch the BBC was through the ownership of a television, and there was no way to prevent anyone who owned a television from watching the BBC, technological developments have demolished this argument. Millennials consume more and more of their broadcast media through a tablet, computer or phone. Yet, non-payment of the licence fee now accounts for 10 per cent of all criminal convictions in the UK, so we may soon be in the invidious position where a majority of young people watch BBC programmes through devices that are not taxed, while older people who own a television but watch only ITV or Sky Sports are taxed and, in the case of non-compliance, subject to arrest. Those who support the continuation of the licence fee often do so using two arguments: that the BBC is vital for producing what has become known as 'public service broadcasting', and that the BBC produces news that is non-partisan together with unbiased coverage of current affairs.The authors of this book challenge both of these arguments and show that there are various ways in which the BBC could be made independent of the state and/or of compulsory funding.

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Extremist ideas thrive on the certainty they engender in their followers. Undermining that certainty is crucial to their defeat. The scholarship on show in this book is therefore vital: it shows that liberalism is not a Western, Christian or atheist construct. The authors writing here demonstrate that Islam is not only compatible with liberalism, but is inherently liberal. The battle against Islamist extremism must be led by the communities most directly affected. This includes Muslims themselves. This book provides ammunition to those who wish to battle the claim that Islam and freedom are incompatible.

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At the outset of the euro, there was strong opposition to Britain's participation from most free-market economists. However, economists took more nuanced positions with regards to participation by the majority of current euro zone member states. Indeed, continental free-market economists were generally supportive of the euro, believing it would reduce the tendency towards inflation and encourage economic reform. This book looks again at the debate when the euro was first introduced and traces the sources of its current problems. A group of leading monetary economists then propose radical solutions to resolve the long-running crisis of European Monetary Union which has - in all probability - merely been suppressed by the actions of member governments and of the European Central Bank. The authors are all agreed that we cannot return to the status quo if the current members of the euro zone are to prosper in the long term.

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In spite of general reductions in government spending, the prime minister has found room in the government's budget to spend money on a major survey of what makes the British people happy. This will be used, in the prime minister's own words, to guide government policy towards improvements in general well-being rather than improvements in national income. But is it really true that government policy has always been orientated towards maximising GDP? Is it true that well-being does not increase as income increases? Is it true that more equal societies are happier societies? Can we really improve well-being through workplace legislation? Is it right to orientate government policy towards the single aim of increasing aggregate well-being across society as. a whole? These questions and many more are tackled by some of the leading intellectuals in the field. Overall, this monograph provides a substantial challenge to those who want to put the explicit pursuit of well-being at the heart of government policy.

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The UK government in common with the governments of many Western countries is in the midst of implementing policies to reform education. However, the government has, as a matter of principle, decided that profit-making schools cannot provide state-funded education even if they would lead to substantial improvements in quality. This monograph makes the case for widespread acceptance of the profit motive in education. It does so not by presenting statistics that demonstrate that profit-making organisations could drive up quality there is already a substantial literatureon this. Instead, the authors show how profit-making organisations could create an entirely new dynamic of entrepreneurship and innovation. As well as improving quality and reducing costs within existing models, such an approach could lead to the development of completely new ways ofproviding education. The authors of this monograph have a range of international experience. Many of them have run profit-making schools in countries more accepting of the profit motive than the UK, suchas Sweden. Others have struggled against the odds to participate in education reform programmes in the UK. Overall, this collection makes an important contribution to the international debate about education reform

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It is difficult to imagine financial markets without a state regulator. But it was not so long ago that financial markets in Britain developed their own regulation, without government intervention. This monograph examines the economic case for a statutory regulator of investment transactions and finds it wanting. Private stock exchanges can provide regulation at less cost and less intrusively than the FSA.

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Governments, Competition and Utility Regulation continues the series of annual books, published in association with the IEA and the London Business School, which critically reviews the state of utility regulation and competition policy. The book contains incisive chapters on competition policy and trade, antitrust and consumer welfare, merger control and efficiency, regulating the labour market, Ofcom and convergence, energy regulation and competition, regulating the London Underground, the future of water regulation and European merger control. Chapters on each topic are followed by comments from regulators, competition authority chairmen and other experts in the relevant fields. The book provides analysis of and commentaries on the most significant developments in regulation and competition policy, drawing on experiences in Britain, United States and the European Union, as well as in international trade negotiations, It will be of value to practitioners, policymakers and academics who are concerned with regulation, deregulation and policies to promote competition.

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By considering recent and historical events such as the Great Depression, episodes of boom and bust in the UK, and the malaise in Japan in the 1990s and the early 21st century, monetary economist Tim Congdon is able to show how monetary policy affects both financial markets and the real economy. In all these episodes, fluctuations in money supply growth led to booms or busts in financial markets and were associated with turbulence in the price level and in output and employment. The crucial linkages between monetary policy and financial markets, argues the author, involve broad money, not narrow money. Non-bank financial institutions, such as pension funds and insurance companies, play a critical role in transmitting fluctuations in money growth to asset prices. This monograph is an important contribution to the crucial debate on the role of monetary aggregates in setting monetary policy. Congdon's argument, that ignoring monetary aggregates can lead to profound instability in the real economy, is compelling.

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Peter Bauer (Lord Bauer) was an economist of considerable influence, particularly on the prevailing wisdom about the value of foreign aid ('government-to-government transfers', as he preferred to call it). Shortly before his death in May 2002, he received the first award of the prestigious Milton Friedman Prize for Advancing Liberty from the Cato Institute in Washington DC. The volume begins with a transcript of a conversation with Lord Bauer in which he speaks about his career, his interactions with other economists and his contributions to economic analysis. Following that, there is a speech given by John Blundell at the Friedman Prize award ceremony that came just after Lord Bauer's death. The final sections contain ten tributes to Lord Bauer, written by distinguished economists who knew him well, who appreciated his influence and who saw his work from different perspectives. They provide an appraisal of the life and work of a great economist who fundamentally affected the analysis of economic development.

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Free capital movements played an important part in the economic integration and globalisation of the nineteenth century. By the end of the century capital flows were on a remarkable scale. The modern use of capital controls dates back to the 1930s. Professor Capie analyses historical experience with capital controls, in Britain and elsewhere, and reviews the theory. He concludes that such controls are damaging and that there is no case for reviving them, as some economists have suggested and as anti-globalisers would wish. Capital mobility improves the worldwide allocation of resources, channelling resources to their most productive uses. Controls on capital movements result in dead weight losses and bureaucratic costs. They are difficult to remove and they damage the credibility of the government's commitment to a market economy.

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HIV and Aids teaching is compulsory in British schools but the content is not prescribed. Should teaching in such a difficult field, where there are disputes among experts, be left to secondary school teachers with no specialist knowledge? And is it right that the subject should be compulsory? These awkward issues are confronted in this controversial paper which examines the materials being used by schools in HIV/Aids teaching and how teachers are approaching the subject. The authors conclude that, because of material provided by pressure groups, teachers are exaggerating the Aids problem and failing to stress the extent to which the risk of infection depends on behaviour. Rent-seeking by vested interests results in a serious distortion of the views presented to children. Their conclusion about Britain is that HIV/Aids teaching should no longer be compulsory. Either the law should be repealed or schools should simply drop the subject.

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Malaria kills millions of people each year and hundreds of millions more suffer chronic illness. Economic development is inhibited and poverty is perpetuated. Tren and Bate argue that action against malaria is over-centralised and narrowly focused, ignoring local conditions and concerns. Health agencies in developing countries and some companies are trying to stem a resurgent tide of malaria. Their work is, however, hampered by pressure from environmentalist groups and donor agencies which still crusade against the use of DDT and which have a partial victory under the POPs (persistent organic pollutants) convention. A continuing anti-DDT campaign would have as its victims people in some of the world's poorest countries.

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Should economists remain as detached scholars, pursuing their research to the satisfaction of themselves and fellow academics? Or should they try to educate their fellow men and women in economic ideas, hoping to have an impact on economic policy? In this Occasional Paper, Professor Daniel B. Klein addresses these issues, concluding that if economists want to be influential in policy-making, they must be willing to communicate with the 'Everyman'. Scholasticism is valuable in encouraging high research standards, but it has been carried too far in the economics profession, to the detriment of research and teaching which are relevant to policy. Five well-known economists - John Flemming, Charles Goodhart, Israel Kirzner, Deirdre McCloskey and Gordon Tullock - then comment on Klein's paper.

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In this monograph, Professor Gissurarson explains the Icelandic model of fisheries management, Individual Transferable Share Quotas (ITQs), implemented in 1979 to reverse the decline in Icelandic fish stocks. Access to Icelandic fisheries was traditionally open to all. In the 1960s and 1970s excessive catches of herring and then cod led to a decline in stocks of these important species in Iceland's waters. In response, Iceland's government imposed restrictions on the number of days trawlers could put to sea to catch certain species. This led to fishing Derbies, where fishermen competed to catch as many fish as possible in the limited time available. Inevitably, catches continued to exceed sustainable levels. Starting in 1979, the Icelandic government gradually introduced a system of individual transferable share quotas (ITQs), which essentially give boat owners the right to catch a specific proportion of the total allowable catch (TAC) of certain species. If a boat owner does not wish to use all his ITQ he can sell part of it to someone else. This encourages more efficient use of the capital invested in boats and equipment. Because ITQs entitle their owners to a specific share of the future stock of fish, they create incentives to ensure that stocks are sustainable. Since the introduction of ITQs, capital invested in Icelandic fisheries (boats and equipment) has been gradually falling and catches have fallen to sustainable levels, whilst the value of catches has risen. Because of the success of the ITQ system and the wealth it has created, there is now political pressure for an imposition of a resource rent tax. But such a tax would be contrary to the interests of effective conservation of fish stocks. A more appropriate next step would be to introduce a cost-recovery charge and, as a quid pro quo, give ITQ owners greater say in the administration and enforcement of the system. Owners of ITQ would have stronger incentives to ensure that catch levels were set at the economically optimal level.

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In this controversial book Geoffrey Partington looks at the nature and history of teacher education in England and Wales. Starting with a discussion of theories of teaching, he explores the various ideologies and the policies implemented by governments in the post-war period. In the later sections of the book he presents the results of interviews with education practitioners before concluding with a plea to government to free-up the education system as a whole and teacher education in particular.

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The conventional wisdom in land use planning circles is that the 1947 Town and Country Planning Acts represent the most important step forward in the history of British land use planning. This is not a view that is based on systematic evaluation and, as this paper argues, there are good reasons for believing it to be misplaced. The problems with the land use planning system are analogous to those previously experienced with a number of the nationalised industries. Just as many of those industries failed to deliver economic efficiency or, often, even a service to customers - so nationalised land development rights and the large element of administrative discretion in land use planning do not seem to be delivering results in a way that is either cost-effective or in line with what people actually want.

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Stories of fisheries collapse frequently grab the spotlight in the popular press. Sometimes these claims are exaggerated, sometimes not. Some species of fish have undoubtedly suffered serious decline in some areas, for example the cod stocks off New England and the Atlantic coast of Canada are now so depleted that they are close to commercial extinction. This publication attempts to provide solutions to this problem by analysing the different ways in which fish are managed around the world. It looks at the means by which individuals can be encouraged to manage marine resources sustainably, focusing on the role of institutions, conceptualised within the framework of the economics of property rights. Most commentators argue that the solution to the problems faced by the worlds fisheries is more government intervention. But the fact is that government intervention by and large caused the problem in the first place. More often than not catch levels are set and enforced by government officials who have no direct interest in ensuring the sustainability of the oceans' resources. The author is particularly critical of the European Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), which 'neatly condenses just about everything that is wrong with government management of the fisheries'. The book concludes that the prognosis for the world's fisheries is not as gloomy as many commentators have made out but nor is it as rosy as some pretend. Most likely, fisheries management will gradually evolve towards more sustainable practices. This will happen quickly if policy makers follow the precepts laid out in this publication.

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Professor Hugh High provides a critical survey of the effects of tobacco advertising. He argues that 'there is no evidence that advertising of tobacco leads to an increase in the total consumption of tobacco, 'and in particular finds scant evidence of the effect of advertising in inducing the young to begin smoking.

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With higher education in the UK at a critical juncture in its history, two leading commentators offer new perspectives on the fundamentals of this on-going debate. Seville examines the implications of 'modularity' , while Tooley presents a comprehensive critique of government intervention in the university system, questioning whether the state has to be involved at all.

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Frederick Bastiat dismantles Socialism, the Nanny State, the Welfare State, Pro-Business Cronyism, and all the other forms of government interference in people's lives. He destroys the perverse logic of the Do-Gooders who want to help one group or another because, somehow, it's the fair thing to do. Bastiat shows that the result of all this protection and benevolence is to make people poorer and less free. His lessons and logic are up to date and powerful. Amazingly, the book originally came out in 1850! The Law is a quick read for both the beginner and the neophyte...and one you'll choose to re-read.

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When Lord Harris of High Cross (Ralph Harris) died, in October 2006 at the age of 81, the tributes to him described him as one of the 'men who changed Britain'. Friends and opponents alike acknowledged that Ralph, in his role as General Director of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) and in partnership with his friend, Arthur Seldon, had been instrumental in providing the ideas and the intellectual entrepreneurship that sparked the 'Thatcher revolution' of the 1980s, transforming the British economy from one of the worst performers among developed countries to one of the best.This book selects from Ralph's considerable opus, revealing that economics need not always be a 'dismal science'. Economic analysis was, in the hands of Ralph Harris, deployed to great effect in plain language and with a wit and wisdom that made it fun. Colin Robinson's Introduction places Ralph Harris' work in context and provides an invaluable insight into the author's beliefs and personality. This book will be warmly welcomed and read by academics and researchers of economics, politics and the history of ideas as well as those interested in the work of the Institute of Economic Affairs.

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What can today's behavioural economists learn from the classical liberals of the past? Here, Erik Matson offers critical reflections on what he calls 'the new paternalism' - a modern-day approach to policy-making that aims to make individuals better off, when judged by their own standards.

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Many people mistakenly – but perhaps understandably – believe that ‘free banking’ means paying no charges for their bank accounts. But ‘free banking’ is really an historic term to describe a system in which banks issue their own notes – without the presence of a central bank (such as the Bank of England in the UK). For some, this may seem an alien concept. But free banking has already been explored in many countries around the world. The Experience of Free Banking (first published in 1992) analyses the impact of free banking in such countries as Australia, Canada, France, the US and more. And this revised second edition widens and updates its scope to encompass free banking in Belgium, Italy, China and further afield. Featuring chapters from distinguished economists around the world, it also incorporates an innovative guide, providing an invaluable starting point for researchers delving into the historical impact and effectiveness of free banking – or assessing its future potential.

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Raising the Roof addresses one of the key issues of our era - the UK's housing crisis. Housing costs in the United Kingdom are among the highest on the planet, with London virtually the most expensive major city in the world for renting or buying a home. At the core of this is one of the most centralised planning systems in the democratic world - a system that plainly doesn't work. A system that has resulted in too few houses, which are too small, which people do not like and which are in the wrong places, a system that stifles movement and breeds Nimbyism. The IEA's 2018 Richard Koch Breakthrough Prize, with a first prize of GBP50,000, sought free-market solutions to this complex and divisive problem. Here, Breakthrough Prize judge Jacob Rees-Mogg and IEA Senior Research Analyst Radomir Tylecote critique a complex system of planning and taxation that has signally failed to provide homes, preserve an attractive environment and enhance our cities. They then draw from the winning entries to the Breakthrough Prize, and previous IEA research, to put forward a series of radical and innovative measures - from releasing vast swathes of government-owned land to relaxing the suffocating grip of the green belt. Together with cutting and devolving tax, and reforms to allow cities to both densify and beautify, this would create many more homes and help restore property-owning democracy in the UK.

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School of Thought – 101 Great Liberal Thinkers profiles the lives and ideas of some of the leading thinkers on individual liberty – from ancient times to the present day. Award-winning author Eamonn Butler outlines key elements of liberal thought and takes a chronological look at those who shaped it across the centuries. He identifies their common goals – but also highlights their differing views on, for example, the extent of government involvement in our daily lives. For anyone interested in politics, government, social institutions, capitalism, rights, liberty and morality, School of Thought – 101 Great Liberal Thinkers provides a clear and concise introduction to a set of radical ideas – and the thinkers behind them.

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How much money is circulating in the United Kingdom? The question sounds simple. In fact, it is notoriously difficult to answer, because what counts as money is not a straightforward matter. A variety of measures have been advanced, and they tell different stories about the changing supply of money in an economy. These differences are of more than merely academic interest, because measures of the money supply are inputs to the decisions of central banks. Wrong answers can lead to wrong actions, with potentially devastating economic effects. This book examines the measure of money and, in that light, the actions of the Bank of England in the lead up to the 2008 financial crisis and its aftermath. It is essential reading for anyone interested in money, measures of its quantity, and the relationship between the money supply and the economic cycle.

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The authors of Education, War & Peace travelled to Liberia, Sierra Leone and South Sudan to conduct research on education in these conflict-affected countries. They uncovered an inspiring story of entrepreneurs stepping into the breach and providing low-cost private schooling to large numbers of children in areas where government was not working well and basic infrastructure had been destroyed. For-profit schools also expanded quickly to soak up educational demand once the conflicts were over. The fees were affordable to families on the poverty line and the children did better academically than those in government schools. Yet international agencies continue to promote government-run schools, even though state education has been a major source of both conflict and corruption in these countries. This groundbreaking study advocates a different approach. Low-cost private schools should be welcomed by policymakers as a means of providing high quality educational opportunities for all.

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George Selgin is one of the world's foremost monetary historians. In this book, based on the 2016 Hayek Memorial Lecture, he shows how a system of private banks without a central bank can bring about financial stability through self-regulation. If one bank stretches credit too far, it will be reined in by the others before the system as a whole gets out of control. The banks have a strong incentive to ensure an orderly resolution if a particular bank is facing insolvency or illiquidity. Selgin draws on evidence from the era of 'free banking' in Scotland and Canada. These arrangements enjoyed greater financial stability, with fewer banking crises, than the English system with its central bank and the US model with its faulty government regulation. The creation of the Federal Reserve appears to have increased the frequency of financial crises. The book also includes commentaries by Kevin Dowd and Mathieu Bedard. Dowd asks whether free-banking systems should be underpinned by a gold standard,which he regards as a tried-and-tested institution at the heart of their success. Bedard challenges the assumption that the banking sector is inherently unstable and therefore requires state intervention. He argues that increases in government control have made the banking system more prone to crisis.

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