Forget Nordic socialism: Welfare didn’t make Scandinavia rich March 12, 2014 THE NORDIC economic model, followed by Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark, has long been divisive. The Left exalts it and the Right tries to forget about it. Unfortunately, the debate has long created more heat than light. It needn’t. If you argue that smaller government is one of the key routes to a bigger economy, [...]
Letters to the Editor – 12/03 – Venezuela chaos, Greenbelt land, Best of Twitter March 11, 2014 Venezuela chaos [Re: Venezuela’s mad socialist experiment is destroying a nation, yesterday] The Left has been praising Venezuela as some sort of democratic New Way, and has remained wilfully blind to the rigged courts, massive increase in murder, and the harassment of journalists and the media. The country rode on the back of high energy [...]
The big independence lie: Why Scotland could keep the pound March 11, 2014 Truth is usually the first casualty of political battles, as it is of war. I believe that Scotland and England are individually stronger for being part of the UK, but 25 years in currency markets tell me that the No campaign’s argument that Scotland cannot keep the pound is false. It would certainly be a [...]
The McDonald’s doctrine is dead: Ukraine shows why March 11, 2014 A GREAT event took place in Pushkin Square, Moscow on 31 January 1990: a branch of McDonald’s was opened. There was similar excitement in Kiev on 24 May 1997, when the McDonald’s franchise was extended to Ukraine. The US author Thomas Friedman wrote in 1999 that no two countries with such a franchise had ever [...]
Why the Bank of England must stop deleting its historical records March 11, 2014 THE DESTRUCTION of historical records by government bodies is a recurring motif of the unfree society. So the Bank of England’s hesitancy to publish transcripts from its meetings should be a serious cause for concern. Worse still, recordings of the Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) meetings are not even preserved. They are routinely deleted – the [...]
Why the Bank of England needs to stop deleting historical records March 11, 2014 A policy of deleting historical records at the Bank of England has come under fire, as individuals voice concerns about the implication for transparency. The tapes of policy setting meetings are routinely deleted – the transcripts destroyed once minutes are agreed upon. Today, Treasury Select Committee chairman Andrew Tyrie has asked for the Bank of [...]
Letters to the Editor – 11/03 – Tax reform, Best of Twitter March 10, 2014 Tax reform [Re: Stop acquisitive politicians forever with a max tax guarantee, Thursday] I wish I thought a max tax would work, but it would likely be far worse than useless, and open the way for a British alternative minimum tax. Recall the political grandstanding that accompanied the withdrawal of allowances from higher-earning income taxpayers, [...]
Forget sanctions: Putin has already traumatised fragile Russia March 10, 2014 AT FIRST sight, Vladimir Putin’s assertion of Russia’s power and influence in Crimea has been a neat operation with low costs. Moscow’s aggression can even look like a nice little earner. While the EU, US and IMF offer aid to Ukraine, Russia gets to keep the undisbursed $12bn (£7.2bn) of its $15bn soft loan to [...]
Four reasons Osborne should abolish the Budget March 10, 2014 IN EIGHT days, George Osborne will deliver the penultimate Budget of this Parliament. Despite little indication of what it will contain, newspapers are already rife with speculation, organisations are pushing their favourite policy hobby-horses, broadcasters are booking Budget Day interviewees, and commentators are salivating about what a minor tax cut here, or spending pledge there, [...]
Schools aren’t using new freedoms – but Labour criticism is still wrong March 10, 2014 AT THE heart of the coalition’s education reforms is a move towards greater school autonomy to allow more innovation and, ultimately, better results. The idea has its critics. They contend that school autonomy will diminish the quality of education. The shadow education secretary Tristram Hunt has expressed concern that it will lead to “a competitive, [...]