New IEA report compares the performance of the NHS to that of its European counterpartsSummary:While in many other policy areas, there is a political appetite for learning from international best practice, healthcare remains the exception: the healthcare debate remains inward-looking and...

A critique of the New Economic Foundation's 21 hours reportIn the thirtieth IEA Current Controversies Paper, Kristian Niemietz critiques 21 hours, a report from the New Economics Foundation (NEF). The report proposes a gradual reduction of the standard working week to 21 hours within about a...

Not only is fuel duty unfair on motorists, it also puts British companies at a competitive disadvantageExecutive summary:Taxes comprise 60 per cent of the cost of a litre of petrol or diesel. Fuel duty will contribute about £33 billion to the Treasury in 2012.[1]Currently, revenues from fuel...

Full cost of HS2 may reach £80bnSummary:The decision to build High Speed 2 is not justified by an analysis of the costs and benefits of the scheme. Even the government’s own figures suggest that HS2 represents poor value for money compared with alternative investments in transport...