The Bruno Leoni Institute, named after philosopher and scholar
Bruno Leoni
Bruno Leoni (26 April 1913 – 21 November 1967) was an Italian classical-liberal political philosopher and lawyer.
Whilst the war kept Leoni away from teaching, in 1945 he became Full professor of Philosophy of Law. Leoni was also appointed Dea ...
, is an Italian
libertarian
Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...
think-tank promoting
classical liberal
Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics; civil liberties under the rule of law with especial emphasis on individual autonomy, limited government, economic ...
ideas in
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
and in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
. It was founded in 2003 by three libertarian scholars
Carlo Lottieri,
Alberto Mingardi and
Carlo Stagnaro. IBL organizes conferences, publishes books, briefings and academic papers, as well as assisting undergraduate and graduate students with their research work.
About
IBL was established in 2003 to promote free-market ideas. In particular, as stated on its website, the Institute aims to “contribute to the Italian political discourse, to enable a proper appreciation of the role of liberty and private enterprise as pillars of a more prosperous and open society”.
The Institute is an Italian libertarian public policy research organization, structured on the model of US think-tanks such as the
Cato Institute
The Cato Institute is an American libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Ed Crane, Murray Rothbard, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Koch Industries.Koch Indust ...
. Through its policy papers, seminars and publishing activities, the Institute aims to offer a fruitful contribution to the Italian and European political debate. In particular, IBL is dedicated to promote the principles of individual freedom, limited government and free markets and its philosophy is based on
Bruno Leoni
Bruno Leoni (26 April 1913 – 21 November 1967) was an Italian classical-liberal political philosopher and lawyer.
Whilst the war kept Leoni away from teaching, in 1945 he became Full professor of Philosophy of Law. Leoni was also appointed Dea ...
’s thought and ideas.
In its latest 2016 "Global Go To Think Tank Index Report" the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
ranked IBL as the 113th most influential think-tank in the world, out of more than 6,600 institutes. On a European and global level, IBL is part of a broader international network of research centers informed by the same free-market approach: it joins the efforts of the
Atlas Network
Atlas Network, formerly known as the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, is a non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization based in the United States that provides training, networking and grants for libertarian, free-market, and conservative groups ...
and is a founding member of
EPICENTER
The epicenter, epicentre () or epicentrum in seismology is the point on the Earth's surface directly above a hypocenter or focus, the point where an earthquake or an underground explosion originates.
Surface damage
Before the instrumental pe ...
.
Several EPICENTER partners such as the Institute of Economic Affairs and the Lithuanian Free Market Institute are funded by the Tobacco Industry and the IBL is identified as a "Partner" on the website of the transnational tobacco company
British American Tobacco
British American Tobacco plc (BAT) is a British multinational company that manufactures and sells cigarettes, tobacco and other nicotine products. The company, established in 1902, is headquartered in London, England. As of 2019, it is the large ...
Italy.
Annual Index of Liberalizations
IBL publishes an annual Index that aims to shed light on the degree of openness of the 28 Member States by examining ten different economic sectors, which include petrol and diesel retail, electricity, natural gas, labour markets, postal services, telecommunications, broadcasting, air transport, rail transport and insurance. Media and academicians cite the annual index as a source of information for policy-making and research.
First published in 2007, the IBL Index of Liberalizations has greatly evolved over the years. Between 2007 and 2012, Italy was the only country investigated and analyzed against sectoral benchmarks. In 2013, the index methodology was amplified to the EU15, whilst in 2015 the Index began classifying all of the EU28.
Flat-tax project – VentiCinque% per tutti (TwentyFive% for all)
On 26 June 2017, IBL launched a new policy proposal called “Venticinque% per tutti” (Twenty-Five% for all). This ambitious proposal focuses on Italy’s complex tax system. In particular, the Institute suggests a radical fiscal restructuring: a flat, 25% tax rate on the major taxes in Italy’s system (personal income tax, corporation tax, VAT, tax on financial dividends); the repeal of local and regional taxes; and the replacement of the current patchwork of benefits with a universal cash subsidy – a so-called “basic income” subject to a number of conditions.
The proposal has aroused considerable interest and has been widely debated. Several important politicians, such as Italy’s former Prime Ministers Silvio Berlusconi, Romano Prodi and Lamberto Dini have expressed an interest for IBL’s flat tax reform.
Bruno Leoni and Sergio Ricossa Lectures
Between 2008 and 2016, IBL organized a yearly “Discorso Bruno Leoni” (Bruno Leoni Lecture). Since 2016, this lecture has become a biennial occurrence as in 2017 the so-called “Discorso Sergio Ricossa” replaced it. These two lectures are among the Institute’s flagship events, as they strive to bring the Italian public up-to-date to the most relevant international debates. The “Discorsi” are structured as an in-depth lecture by a distinguished scholar or author, in which a seminal topic is investigated from a free-market, individual liberty perspective.
Bruno Leoni Award
Since 2008, every year the Institute attributes a "Bruno Leoni Award" dedicated to the thinker whose teachings the Institute refers to, and awarded to distinguished personalities. The award is intended to eminent figures that, through a recently published book, or with the work of a lifetime, have helped to advance the ideas of individual freedom, free market and free competition.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bruno Leoni Institute
2003 establishments in Italy
Think tanks established in 2003
Political and economic think tanks based in the European Union
Classical liberalism
Libertarian think tanks
Non-profit organisations based in Italy
Libertarianism in Italy
Austrian School
Think tanks based in Italy