Madeline Grant
CapX
United Kingdom
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Past articles by Madeline:
The real danger of a 'People's Vote' to our democracy
Writing in the mid-nineteenth century, Karl Marx theorised that Britain, the country in which capitalism was most advanced, would be the likeliest, most desirable location for Communist revolt. As we know, his predictions didn’t come to fruition. Though there were eruptions of popular unrest and state repression in the mid-nineteenth century, none materialised into the kind … → Read More
Sanctions are increasingly popular
From Ancient Greece to modern day Iran, sanctions have a history of failure → Read More
DEBATE: Do we need tighter rules to prevent unpaid internships and improve social mobility?
Do we need tighter rules to prevent unpaid internships and improve social mobility? → Read More
The history of dating - 'It's the economy, stupid!' (Part 2)
Continued from Part 1. In contrast, societies where men are in short supply often tend towards permissiveness and lower levels of commitment. The First World War had a seismic impact on romantic and marital behaviour. More than 700,000 British men were killed during World War One, with as many left seriously wounded or incapacitated – … Continue reading "The history of dating – ‘It’s the… → Read More
The history of dating - ‘it’s the economy, stupid’ (Part 1)
In 1992, the economist Gary Becker received the Nobel Prize for extending economic analysis to spheres of human behaviour previously considered the sole domain of sociologists and psychologists. These included topics as diverse as education, racial discrimination, medicine, drug addiction and even traffic flows. Becker’s ‘people-centric’ approach has been hugely influential. According to his… → Read More
The unseen benefits of leaving the European Union
The fraught Brexit debate badly needs a dose of Bastiat → Read More
Remembering Basil Fisher
Today (October 8th) would have been the birthday of Basil Fisher, the younger brother of the IEA’s founder, Sir Antony Fisher. Though few remember Basil Fisher today, his life (and death) have made a lasting impact. Antony and Basil were born in 1915 and 1917 respectively. Neither knew their father, George, killed by a Turkish … Continue reading "Remembering Basil Fisher" → Read More
From pets to paint, the housing crisis has infected the British economy
We tend to conceptualise the housing crisis in terms of affordability – and justifiably so. Over the last two decades, the ratio of median house prices to earnings in England and Wales has more than doubled. Back in 1997, house prices represented, on average, around 3.6 times workers’ annual gross full-time earnings. By 2016, however, … → Read More
“Brexit is sexist” - Institute of Economic Affairs
Although the EU has been influential in the development of equalities legislation, Brexit would be unlikely to put these rights in jeopardy. Historically, the UK has led the way when it comes to women’s rights and workplace and family protections, and this will surely continue. The worry that undermining women’s rights is part of a … Continue reading "“Brexit is sexist”" → Read More
Consumers will pick up the bill for an 'Amazon tax' on innovation
The creative destruction that did for Woolworths has created exciting new and improved alternatives → Read More
HS2 is a classic case of the "sunk costs" fallacy — Institute of Economic Affairs
It’s no secret that ambitious public infrastructure projects often end up running monumentally over budget. Recent transport history is littered with such examples, like the Jubilee Line Extension in the late 90s, which exceeded initial forecasts by over £1 billion. Or the Channel Tunnel, which ended up costing more than twice as much as originally planned, … Continue reading "HS2 is a classic… → Read More
It's not too late to scrap HS2
The cost of previous white elephants pale in comparison to the amount being spent on HS2 → Read More
"Sin Taxes" are aggressively regressive
Are “sin” taxes on food, soft drinks, tobacco and alcohol regressive? As my colleague Christopher Snowdon has outlined in his latest report, this is a question that shouldn’t really need to be asked. Any tax that takes a greater share of income from the poor than the rich is, by definition, regressive. End of story. … Continue reading "“Sin Taxes” are aggressively regressive" → Read More
Market forces can rejuvenate the housing market
Private housebuilding is the norm in Europe - it should be in the UK too → Read More
July 4 has important lessons for British independence
On this day in 1776, the thirteen colonies of America, then at war with Britain, declared themselves to be states of a new nation. For almost as long, Americans all over the world have celebrated Independence Day, with barbecues, beer and – of course – fireworks. Nearly 250 years on from that climactic moment, there … → Read More
The moral panic over video games must not become an excuse for yet more lifestyle regulation – Institute of Economic Affairs
If you’re under 30 — or have a child in their teens — then chances are you’ve heard of a game called Fortnite. Fortnite, a “survival shooter” vid → Read More
Beware the hysteria over 'addictive' games like Fortnite
If you’re under 30 — or have a child in their teens — then chances are you’ve heard of a game called Fortnite. Fortnite, a “survival shooter” video game released last year, has quickly become one of the most popular online games in the world — a towering cultural phenomenon on a par with Minecraft … → Read More
In defence of unpaid internships
Chuka Umunna landed himself in hot water last week, after it emerged that his office had advertised a year-long “placement” for students, which is unpaid except for travel expenses. The Streatham MP was swiftly and snarkily reprimanded in a message from the Leader’s Office to the entire PLP, highlighting that their party policy is to … → Read More
NUS politicians do not speak for 'one million students' on Brexit
The NUS routinely prioritises political grandstanding over addressing the concerns of ordinary students → Read More
'The New Serfdom' is a road to nowhere
Angela Eagle's new book is an exercise in constructing - and demolishing - straw men → Read More