Littlewood moves to the IEA
Monday, October 26, 2009 
Congratulations to Mark Littlewood of Progressive Vision who has been appointed director-general of the Institute of Economic Affairs, one of Britain's leading think tanks. Guido Fawkes has the news HERE.
An ardent smoker, Mark chaired and helped organise our recent event at the Lib Dem conference which was co-hosted by Forest, The Free Society and Liberal Vision. He also helped launch the Save Our Pubs & Clubs campaign in June and appears in the campaign video HERE.
By coincidence the first general director of the IEA was Ralph Harris who became Lord Harris of High Cross in 1979 and chairman of Forest in 1987.
I worked with Ralph for eight years until his death in October 2006. He was a great help but he made no secret of the fact that his number one love was the IEA which he joined in 1957.
In those Keynsian days free marketeers were treated like flat Earthers. It was many years before the IEA's free market ideas were taken seriously but the IEA is often credited with laying the foundations for what became Thatcherism.
In recent years the IEA has been curiously quiet. Mark will, I'm sure, change all that. He has a gift for stirring things up (in the nicest possible way!) and his appointment is a refreshing change of direction for what had become a rather staid and stuffy institution.
I can think of only two problems. What is he going to do with those orange ties? And where on earth is he going to light up when he's at work?
Reader Comments (4)
Sshhh Simon you'll get his missus after you about that tie. I was in trouble for only diplomatially suggesting it is growing on me after several outings.
BTW if any of you think it stange a Liberal Democrat has been appointed, Mark is what is called a "classical liberal." It is a 19th century Whig type ideology of the free market that allowed the UK to be greatest power "that has ever existed" according to Professor Kennedy in his Fall And Rise Of The Great Powers. To this very day the UK is the greatest percentage exporter of GDP, in goods and services, 37% while the next is Germany at 28%. It was the merger with David Owen's SDP that brought out the nannies.
As his profile in the Daily Telegraph’s Top 50 most influential Liberals stated.
“He is firmly on the libertarian wing of the LibDems and is viewed as a right wing extremist by many in the party’s hierarchy.”
Mark is a sad loss to the pro choice movement, I only hope the IEA will be influential from a broader canvas point of view in the nanny and bully state.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/liberaldemocrats/6206525/Top-50-most-influential-Liberal-Democrats-50-26.html
"In recent years the IEA has been curiously quiet."
Rather like the Eurosceptics in the Tory Party.
Good luck to Mark, anyway: he seems like a sound sort of bloke ( albeit with a crap dress sense).
Martin
"albeit with a crap dress sense."
Be warned, auntie A will be after you if you continue.
"In recent years the IEA has been curiously quiet."
Mark's outstanding media skills? Cause and effect.
"Rather like the Eurosceptics in the Tory Party."
Yes, but a disciplined, temporary hibernation to re-awaken after the next election.
"a....temporary hibernation to re-awaken after the next election."
Ah - the Rip Van Winkle wing of the Party.
Good show !