free trade

June 7, 2018

Why the EU Needs the City Too

The UK might appear to have the most to lose from Brexit if City firms find it harder to sell financial services into the EU. But London has actually consolidated its position as the world’s leading financial centre since the vote to leave, helped by strong signals that the UK at least will keep its markets open. The EU should follow this lead.
December 1, 2017

2017 Index of Liberalisations: a Summary

The 2017 IBL Index of Liberalisations aims to shed light on the degree of openness of the 28 Member States by examining ten different economic sectors. First published in 2007, the Index began classifying all of the 28 EU Member States in 2015.
July 27, 2017

Tax Freedom Day 2017

The purpose of this study is to compare the tax and social security burdens of individual employees earning typical salaries in each of the 28 member states of the European Union and, in doing so, to determine a “tax liberation day” — measuring how much of each year’s work is devoted to paying taxes — for workers in each country.
June 1, 2017

Spanish Tax Freedom Day

In 2017, the average Spaniard will have worked 178 days in order to fulfill their tax obligations. In other words, Tax Freedom Day, calculated annually by Think Tank Civismo, takes place on 28 June, one day ahead of last year’s.
January 1, 2017

Balancing the Economy: the Hand of Government or the Invisible Hand?

The past record of industrial policy in the UK is a catalogue of waste and ineffectiveness. By the end of the 1970s it was widely accepted that the strategy of attempting to pick winners and promoting national champions was fundamentally flawed.