The Eternal Battle between Ideology and Expertise

In politics and policymaking, controversies and conflicts arise often. The term denotes situations where even knowledgeable, rational, and sincere actors struggle to resolve an …

Why Singapore’s Healthcare System is Unique

Singapore’s healthcare system is the most efficient in the world, according to the latest Bloomberg health systems ranking; further, according to the Economist Intelligence …

The realities of France’s fragile economy

It is well known that high production taxes and social contributions in France have been stifling the economy for some time. Prior to the …

Afghanistan is exposing the weaknesses of the EU’s security policy

The military withdrawal from Afghanistan has enabled the Taliban to gain full control of the country, which severely threatens civil rights. The rights of …

The case for a liberal precautionary principle

The EU’s travails over vaccine supply have revitalised calls in some free-market circles for the scrapping of the precautionary principle (PP).  This is the …

Getting quickly out of crises – what do we know?

Coronavirus has resulted in a major economic crisis, and caused immense damage to both the economy and people’s lives. This damage is both a …

Food Security in the wake of Covid-19

Global food supply chains have been disrupted by restrictions on movement, and rising food protectionism has threatened access to food and its affordability. Emerging …

The pursuit of a more popular EU may be a risky and hazardous business

Britain has left the EU. Politicians in Brussels and Member States are seeking a mission for The Union that has broad public appeal in …

The Education Voucher, a proposal For Excellence

The idea behind education vouchers has a solid academic and research backing. This arguably began in the 1950s with Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman proposing …

France’s quest for European tech leadership

Despite being a fierce supporter of pro-Europeanism and market liberalisation in the past, Emmanuel Macron’s plans for European-wide protectionism has been relatively unsuccessful. Early …

An Analysis of the Spitzenkandidaten Process – Part 1

The European Commission is meant to be the non-partisan, executive branch of the EU that consists of experts rather than politicians. However, the appointment …

A new beginning – Greece after the elections

Unemployment peaked at 27.5%, more than 400,000 people emigrated in a single year, and the debt to GDP ratio reached 180%. The 2008 financial …

The fiscal union: a necessary step for the EMU

The 2008 crisis exposed the grave flaws of the EU’s Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). Most economists were not able to predict such economic …

Corrupting CAP

A tale of corruption, political scandals, and even murder: the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has turned agriculture in Europe into an environmentally unsustainable, …

Blue card lottery

Ahead of the European elections, migration remains one of the main challenges facing the EU. Populist and Eurosceptic movements have sought political capital from …

The Mass Demonstrations in France is a Reaction to the Effects of Interventionism, Not Liberalism

Mass protests of the “yellow vests” have been taking place in France since 17 November 2018. The catalyst of the demonstration was a fuel …

Spanish flu: Pedro Sanchez’s malignant economic policy threatens Spain’s recovery

Having recovered from the recession that was brought about by the financial crisis, Spain’s economy is improving, but vulnerable. With the advent of Pedro …

New Zealand is a testament to the benefits of market liberalisation – and a warning of the subsequent back peddling that can arise

Jamie Whyte at the First Economic Freedom Summit, addressing liberalising reforms in New Zealand
The transformation of New Zealand’s economic policy from 1972 …

Doing more with less: The future of the Common Agricultural Policy post-2020

On May 2 the European Commission released a Communication that outlined the Union’s overall budgetary plan for the 2021 – 2027 Multiannual Financial Framework …

Perspectives for Poland

In the last 25 years, the Polish economy has grown faster than the economies of Western Europe and the US, which enabled a significant …

Macron’s plan to make France less European – and more prosperous

The tables have turned. It used to be that Britain provided the blueprint for radical market-based reform, whilst France was Europe’s tax and regulatory …

Early Elections in Italy? An Issue of democracy, corruption, and banks

With the potential for an early election by the end of the year, Italy must face the realities of its democratic system: cronyism and …

Emmanuel Macron has won. Will he be able to deliver?

On 7 may 2017, the French elected as their new President a 39-year-old former banker, someone neither left nor right, unknown to them until …

Stakeholder capitalism and the free-rider problem

Professional trend-watcher David Mattin argues that so-called ‘ethical business’ is the new big thing. He raises Uber’s recent regulatory and PR woes – the …

Eurexit – is leaving the Eurozone an option?

The upcoming months will be decisive for the future of the Euro. The French election, to be held on April 23rd (first round, followed …

Greece – the conundrum of currency and institutions

Part 2 of our Greek economy series. For Part 1, please click here.
 
The Institutional Problem Revealed through Global Indices
 
One could arguably …

European Superindex

It has been one year and a half since Professor Nicola Rossi and I started the Superindex at Istituto Bruno Leoni.
 
The Superindex …

The spectre of another lost decade

On Sunday night, following a shock negative result in a referendum on the constitutional reform he had championed, Matteo Renzi, Italy’s Prime Minister, announced …

The Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base relaunched

 
The European Commission has rebooted its proposal for a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base. The CCCTB aims to tax multinationals operating in more …

Ageing Europe: A Mixed Blessing

Pension Systems and Politicians’ Temptations
 
It is common knowledge that Europeans are in their best physical shape ever. On average, in the European …

The changing narrative of the euro crisis

Diego Zuluaga // 05.10.2016
When the eurozone debt crisis broke out in late 2009, there was considerable agreement among policymakers that budgetary prudence and …

Tax and labour market reform in Spain: a work in progress

Diego Sánchez de la Cruz // 03.05.2016
When former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero and his Socialist party (PSOE) took office in early …

Deregulation and reforms are the missing ingredient in the recovery

Diego Zuluaga // 11.11.2015
Writing in the Financial Times (“In the long shadow of the Great Recession,” 10 November), Martin Wolf meditates on the …