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--------------------------------------------------------------------------- COME ROUND THE WORLD WITH US on 8 APRIL --------------------------------------------------------------------------- BE THERE OR BE...well, uninformed. At 6pm on Tuesday 8 April we're holding a reception to lauch our new study called 'Around the World in 80 Ideas' and the website http://www.80ideas.net that goes with it. It shows how clever ideas have brought choice, competition and entrepreneurship into sectors that are commonly regarded as the preserve of government -- and have done so in some very unlikely places and some very unlikely sectors. At the beano, there will be lots of young movers and shakers from our Next Generation Group, though we're also expecting some prominent guests from overseas and grey-haired worthies from the UK like Dr Eamonn Butler and Keith Boyfield who will (very briefly!) point out some of the highlights on the new site. Contact steve@adamsmith.org (020 7222 4995) for invites. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- ALSO IN THIS BULLETIN... --------------------------------------------------------------------------- THINK PIECES: Non-affordable housing; end research; cut taxes FORWARD DIARY: Coming events and new fixtures ROUND UP: Reform conference, muffins, essay prize and more NUTTY NEWS: You couldn't even make it up... BUT FIRST... No, I'm not going to bore you with those unfair "'How do you recognize a French soldier?' 'Sunburnt armpits'" jokes. So how about this instead: There is perhaps not much love lost between New Labour and Old Labour politicians these days, but a pair of them found their taxis drawing up to the House at the same time. The New Labour politician boasted: "I always give the driver a big tip and tell him to vote New Labour." To which the Old Labour politician replied: "I always give the driver no tip at all and tell him to vote New Labour." --------------------------------------------------------------------------- THINK PIECES: Find them on http://www.adamsmith.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------- WHY AFFORDABLE HOUSING ISN'T: 'Affordable housing' is the spin-doctors' cuddly new term for a discredited old policy, says ASI author DANIEL MOYLAN. The term suggests lower house prices for buyers: actually it means forcing developers to build social housing. And that just puts up house prices for everyone else... Read the think-piece on http://www.adamsmith.org (just click in the red box on the front page). SCRAP THE RESEARCH COUNCILS: According to TIM AMBLER of the London Business School, says that it's archaic academic rules, not public needs, which drives the UK's vast spending on 'research'. And he reckons we could save 600m pounds by scrapping the 8 councils and just letting the universities get on with it. Read the piece on http://www.adamsmith.org (the red box). TAXING TIMES: Our new pre-budget facts paper makes horrific reading for those of a nervous financial disposition. Among its points are: *** The tax burden has grown by about 100 billion pounds between 1997 and 2003. Of every 1 pound rise in GDP, the government took 42p in tax. *** In 2002-03, some 3.1 million paid the 40% higher rate -- up massively from the 2.3 million in the top bracket in 1997-98! *** How many tax inspectors does it take to screw a pound out of us? Well, there are 62,000 Inland Revenue officials -- 1 to every 474 taxpayers. Each tax collector nets the Chancellor 1.8 million pounds in tax receipts. *** So you think petrol and car taxes pay for roads? Wrong. Motoring taxes raise about 28bn pounds. The government only spends 8.5bn on transport. See http://www.taxfreedomday.co.uk for the whole shocking story! --------------------------------------------------------------------------- COMING UP: Contact events@adamsmith.org for info and invites. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Among the meetings we have in the diary are: - Local-government minister NICK RAYNSFORD MP (25 March) - Washington trade expert GREG RUSHFORD (28 March) - Tory finance boffin HOWARD FLIGHT MP (2 April) - Audit Commission chair JAMES STRACHAN (9 April) - London schools boss PROFESSOR TIM BRIGHOUSE (15 April) - Commons committee chair DR TONY WRIGHT MP (30 April) --------------------------------------------------------------------------- NEW FIXTURES: More on http://www.adamsmith.org/policy/news/forward.htm --------------------------------------------------------------------------- KELVIN MCKENZIE, controversial journalist, radio entrepreneur, and ex-Sun editor, speaks his mind at an ASI Power Lunch in Westminster on 15 May. Contact events@adamsmith.org for information and invitations. CHARLES POWELL, former foreign-policy adviser to Margaret Thatcher, reflects on the state of the Middle East at a lunchtime seminar on 17 June. Contact events@adamsmith.org for information and invitations. STEVE NORRIS, the Tories' man for London, leads off a Power Lunch on 22 May. Contact events@adamsmith.org for information and invitations. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- THINKING AROUND --------------------------------------------------------------------------- A BETTER WAY FOR HEALTH, EDUCATION, AND CRIME: Reform launches its radical new agenda in Westminster starting 10am on 7 April. Speakers include Sir Roger Douglas and Ruth Richardson from NZ, Ray Mallon, John Norquist (Mayor of Milwaukee and school voucher pioneer) and Chris Woodhead. Email conference@reformbritain.com to register free. MUFFINEERS: The next of our occasional get-togethers for sensible think- tanks and policy groups is 10am on Thursday 20 March, and we're looking at more-or-less-monthly dates between now and the summer. Numbers are limited, but contact steve@adamsmith.org if you think you really must be there. FOREST: The Freedom Organisation for the Right to Enjoy Smoking Tobacco has launched a rather lively new website at http://www.forestonline.org which features all kinds of smoking and pro-smoking personalities like Stephen Fry, Antony Worral Thompson, Johnny Depp.... IEA PRIZE ESSAY: The Institute of Economic Affairs has launched an essay contest for under-18s, with 1000 pounds first prize. Entries -- 1400 words on aid, trade, and freedom -- in by 15 April. Email cblundell@iea.org.uk for all the details. THE ASI'S DR EAMONN BUTLER AND DR MADSEN PIRIE wish it to be known that they are no relation of the Deputy President of the Eastern, Central, and Southern African Federation of Accountants, whose name is Butler Phirie! --------------------------------------------------------------------------- NEWS YOU CAN USE (depressing though it is) --------------------------------------------------------------------------- - a new study says that students with arts degrees tend to be poorer than those who leave education after taking A-levels. I know the feeling. - a DWAP study finds that a quarter of lone parents who find a New Deal job will be no better off. - Whitehall figures show the government is massivly short on its target to cut child poverty by 2005. - John Prescott's efforts to increase cycling trips by 200 per cent are likely to produce only a 37 per cent gain, according to officials. - nearly a third of Britain's university academics are thinking of quitting because of a growing workload and poor pay, says their professional body. - two-thirds of the computers stolen from government departments are stolen from the Ministry of Defence. e -- Dr Eamonn Butler Adam Smith Institute, 23 Great Smith Street, London SW1P 3BL, UK E-mail butler@adamsmith.org - Visit us online at www.adamsmith.org Tel +44 (0)20 7222 4995 - Fax +44 (0)20 7222 7544 To unsubscribe, visit www.adamsmith.org/lists.htm
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