The IEA is an educational charity and the UK’s original free market think tank, founded in 1955. Our mission is to improve understanding of the fundamental institutions of a free society by analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems.
The IEA challenges people to think about the correct role of institutions, property rights and the rule of law in creating a society that fosters innovation, entrepreneurship and the efficient use of environmental resources.
The IEA is an educational charity (No CC 235 351) and independent research institute limited by guarantee.
Ideas and policies produced by the Institute are freely available from our website for any individual or organisation to adopt, but we do not “sell” policy. The Institute is entirely independent of any political party or group, and is entirely funded by voluntary donations from individuals, companies and foundations who want to support its work, plus income from book sales and conferences. It does no contract work and accepts no money from government.
Established in 1955 by the late Sir Antony Fisher and Lord Harris, the IEA’s first Director General, and joined by Arthur Seldon as the first Editorial Advisor, the IEA has a long and proud history (read more about our history).
Latest reports
On morality, human behaviour & economics
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs restates the moral, philosophical and theological case for free-market capitalism. This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs introduces On Morality, Human Behaviour and Economics, a new volume edited by Professor Juan Castañeda and Lord Kamall that restates the moral, philosophical...
Evolutionary economics
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs concludes that prosperity emerges from spontaneous market coordination, not conscious direction. In a new paper, academic Dr Erik Lidström examines the evolutionary mismatch between human hunter-gatherer psychology and the demands of modern capitalist economies. Our brains evolved over two million years for small tribes...
Fool’s gold
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs examines the case for wealth taxes and asks why they have failed across Europe. While Britain does not have a simple 'wealth tax', it raises more from wealth-related taxes than any other OECD economy. UK wealth inequality is not especially high or rising—the top...
A growth mindset?
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs examines public understanding of British economic performance and attitudes to pro-growth policies. Most Britons (87%) want the UK to focus more on economic growth, and would back free market reforms to deliver it, including: reducing energy costs (77%), cutting taxes on workers (72%) and...
Hayek’s law legislation and liberty: A guide
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs makes one of the twentieth century’s most important works of political philosophy available to a wider audience. F. A. Hayek (1899–1992) was one of the most important social thinkers of the last hundred years. Law, Legislation and Liberty (1973–79) is one of his most...
Green deals in the EU
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs Since the 2008 financial crisis, environmental policy has shifted away from simply managing negative externalities and gradually converged with regular industrial policy. Various ‘green deals’ have been launched around the world with the aim of achieving a combination of economic and environmental development. Economists,...
A taxing inheritance
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs examines Britain's inheritance tax system and asks if reform is enough. Britain has fifth highest tax in the OECD on what parents leave to children, placing it in a small group of high-tax outliers and far above where headline comparisons often suggest.The tax is...
The genius of Adam Smith
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs marks the 250th anniversary of the publication of Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations. In the Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith argues that individuals pursuing their own self-interest can promote the public good when channelled through his ‘system of natural liberty.’ Smith’s ‘system of natural...
Just stop oil?
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs examines the economic and environmental consequences of ending domestic oil and gas production. No credible forecast shows UK oil and gas demand falling to zero by 2050, even under net zero scenarios – oil and gas are essential ingredients in plastics, fertilisers, medicines and...
Is flexible working?
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs examines the costs and benefits of flexible working. The costs of flexible working requirements have rarely been properly assessed and could extend to undermining growth, increasing unemployment and the rise in post-Covid withdrawal from the workforce. Employers and employees, negotiating in the ‘particular circumstances...
The cost of Net Zero
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs examines the cost of Net Zero. Since 2019, there have been many attempts to put a cost on achieving net zero by 2050, with wildly different results, from the CCC to HMT and NESO. If we are to have a serious debate about net...
Spontaneous order: Analysis and implications
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs analyses spontaneous order and its implications. Spontaneous order is crucial for understanding fundamental human institutions (e.g. language and the law, morals, markets and money) and for defending individual liberty. But its operation is often overlooked. Empirical studies have confirmed that spontaneous order has been...
The welfare state myth
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs looks at how low-tax countries offer the world's best welfare. New analysis by the Institute of Economic Affairs busts the myth of Nordic-model high-tax welfare superiority that has dominated political discourse for decades, and delivers a devastating verdict on Britain’s welfare performance as the...
Mind the fertility gap
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs examines why people stopped having babies and how economic freedom can help. This report shows how pro-natal policies that focus on cash incentives, such as baby bonuses, subsidies, and maternity pay, may have some short term effect but are often found wanting and prohibitively...
Robin Hood in reverse
This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs looks at foreign aid spending in regions that are richer than parts of the UK. UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) spending has gone to regions of upper-middle-income countries with GDP per capita figures equal to or in excess of those reported in large parts...