Christopher Snowdon is an independent writer and researcher. He is the author of The Art of Suppression (2011), The Spirit Level Delusion (2010) and Velvet Glove, Iron Fist (2009). His work focuses on pleasure, prohibition and dodgy statistics. His blog is Velvet Glove, Iron Fist.
When we scheduled the release of The Wages of Sin Taxes for 15th May, we did not guess that it would be sandwiched between the announcement of a 50p minimum price for alcohol in Scotland (Monday) and a new campaign for sin taxes on food and soft ...
Blog - Wednesday 16 May 2012
What is the true aim of taxes on alcohol, tobacco, fatty foods, and other "vices"? Are smokers, drinkers and fat people burdens on society who should be discouraged from enjoying their habits by taxation? Do these "sin taxes" actually ...
Research - Tuesday 15 May 2012
Tim Worstall made himself (more) unpopular with Compass last week by pointing out that their idea of creating a form of national socialism rather resembled the sort of economy favoured by National Socialists. In a think piece entitled ‘ Progressive ...
Blog - Friday 04 May 2012
Consider two propositions. Firstly, that a minimum price on a unit of alcohol will reduce alcohol consumption by making cheap booze less affordable. Secondly, that minimum wage laws increase the price of a unit of labour, but do not lead to greater ...
Blog - Tuesday 20 March 2012
Today sees the launch of the Adam Smith Institute's latest report, Plain packaging: Commercial expression, anti-smoking extremism and the risks of hyper-regulation . Its author, Christopher Snowdon, is the author of books including The Spirit ...
Blog - Monday 20 February 2012
Commercial expression, anti-smoking extremism and the risks of hyper-regulation. ...
Research - Monday 20 February 2012
George Monbiot begins his Guardian op-ed this week with this jaw-dropping assertion: ...
Blog - Tuesday 07 February 2012
In their ongoing campaign for plain packaging of cigarettes, Action on Smoking and Health have dismissed fears of a slippery slope, saying: ...
Blog - Friday 03 February 2012
When a Guardian journalist attended an Adam Smith Institute event in October , he came away convinced that libertarians are “obsessed” with smoking. This, of course, is an outrageous slur (everybody knows libertarians are obsessed with guns and drugs) ...
Blog - Wednesday 18 January 2012
One of the central arguments of The Spirit Level - the Bible of self-styled “egalitarians” - is that income inequality erodes trust and social cohesion. This lack of social capital is blamed for a host of societal problems, including a reluctance to ...
Blog - Friday 06 January 2012
Earlier this year, Ireland’s Office of Revenue Commissioners made a shock discovery , albeit one which sounds slightly dull when put in the language of economics. They found that the price elasticity of cigarettes in Ireland is -3.6, which is to say ...
Blog - Tuesday 20 December 2011
The current issue of the British Medical Journal carries an angst-ridden letter titled ‘ Can the Dutch Government really be abandoning smokers to their fate? ’ Since June 2010, the largest party in the Dutch parliament has been the People’s Party for ...
Blog - Friday 09 December 2011
