The Institute for Free Trade (IFT) is a private,

not-for-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

, research foundation based in

central London Central London is the innermost part of London, in England, spanning several boroughs. Over time, a number of definitions have been used to define the scope of Central London for statistics, urban planning and local government. Its characteris ...

. It aims to make "the intellectual and moral case for

free trade Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econo ...

" and sees

Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...

as an "opportunity to revitalise the world trading system". The IFT was founded by

Daniel Hannan Daniel John Hannan, Baron Hannan of Kingsclere (born 1 September 1971) is a British writer, journalist and former politician serving as an adviser to the Board of Trade since 2020. He is the founding president of the Initiative for Free Trade ...

, MEP for South East England, in September 2017. It is the United Kingdom's first, and currently only,

think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...

specialising exclusively in

trade policy A commercial policy (also referred to as a trade policy or international trade policy) is a government's policy governing international trade. Commercial policy is an all encompassing term that is used to cover topics which involve international t ...

and the economics of trade.

Aims

IFT’s official aims are to “recapture the moral case for open commerce” and promote free trade. It aims to achieve this through educating civil society; bringing together businesses to assess the impact of trade barriers and their removal; and encouraging policymakers and lawmakers to support trade liberalisation. As well as holding events with high-profile speakers, IFT produces and distributes research aimed at specific audiences. These range from short explainer videos to long academic reports. While founded by a Conservative MEP, the IFT aims to be a non-partisan organisation and has supporters across the political spectrum. For example, Labour MP

Graham Stringer Graham Eric Stringer (born 17 February 1950) is a British Labour Party politician serving as MP for Blackley and Broughton since 1997. Before entering Parliament, he served as leader of Manchester City Council from 1984 to 1996, and chair o ...

wrote the foreword for 'The Left-Wing Case for Free Trade'. However, as it supports the UK leaving the EU in order to pursue an independent trade policy, it has drawn ire from politician's who supported Remain in the

EU Referendum This is a list of referendums related to the European Union, or referendums related to the European Communities, which were predecessors of the European Union. Since 1972, a total of 48 referendums have been held by EU member states, candidate st ...

Chuka Umunna Chuka Harrison Umunna (; born 17 October 1978) is a British retired politician who served as Member of Parliament (UK), Member of Parliament (MP) for Streatham (UK Parliament constituency), Streatham from 2010 United Kingdom general election, ...

described the think-tank as "fanatical hard Brexit-supporting ideologues",Boris Johnson under fire for waiving £6,000 fee for hard Brexit event at Foreign Office. Secret emails show Government ethics chief raised concerns about launch of IFT think tank at the Foreign Office. Lizzy Buchan, political correspondent. Independent. 22.2.2018. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-fee-hard-brexit-event-foreign-office-ift-daniel-hannan-a8223971.html while

Chris Bryant Christopher John Bryant (born 11 January 1962) is a British people, British politician and former Anglican priest who is the Chair of the Committees on Commons Select Committee on Standards, Standards and Commons Select Committee of Privileges, ...

said that "the IFT may seem like a fringe group of wacky fanatics, but the reality is they are highly influential and are pushing a dangerous agenda."

History

The creation of the

Department for International Trade The Department for International Trade (DIT) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of Government of the United Kingdom, His Majesty's Government responsible for striking and extending trade agreements between the U ...

(DIT) in July 2016 signalled the UK Government’s commitment to pursuing an independent trade policy for the first time since 1975. IFT aims to fill the corresponding gap in UK-based research and expertise on trade issues, to help contribute to a more informed government, legislature, business community and general public. The initiative was launched in the Map Room at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office by Boris Johnson, the

Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as ...

, and Liam Fox,

Secretary of State for International Trade The secretary of state for international trade, also referred to as the international trade secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the business of the Department for Internat ...

, in September 2017. The IFT was not charged for the use of the room as the event was deemed to be in support of the Government's objectives on free trade. The IFT was initially named Institute for Free Trade, but changed to Initiative for Free Trade after it emerged that permission to use the title "Institute", which is protected by law, had not been granted by

Companies House Companies House is the executive agency of the company registrars of the United Kingdom, falling under the remit of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. All forms of companies (as permitted by the Companies Act) are i ...

and the

Business Secretary The secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The incumbent is a memb ...

. In October 2017 IFT hosted its first event—the Global Trade Summit (London)—and has supported and participated in the Conservatives International conferences in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

and

Kampala Kampala (, ) is the capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,680,000 and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division, and Ruba ...

in 2017, as well as La Convención Azul in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

. In September 2018, it launched 'An “Ideal” US-UK Free Trade Arrangement’ in conjunction with 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 ...

and nine other free-market British and American think-tanks. Acted as a proposed template for a future trade agreement between the US and the UK, the paper attracted significant media attention.

Publications

* ‘An “Ideal” US-UK Free Trade Arrangement’, 2017 * ‘Boosting UK-East Africa Trade’, 2018 * ‘A Roadmap for UK Accession to CPTPP’, 2018 The Case for Free Trade series *‘The Left-Wing Case for Free Trade’, 2017 *'Why Free Trade is Good for Your Health', 2017 *'The Development Case for Free Trade', 2018

Notable people

International advisory board *

Tony Abbott Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is a former Australian politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Abbott was born in Londo ...

: Prime Minister of Australia (2013-2015) *

José María Aznar José María Alfredo Aznar López (; born 25 February 1953) is a Spanish politician who was the prime minister of Spain from 1996 to 2004. He led the People's Party (PP), the dominant centre-right political party in Spain. A member of the Fre ...

: Prime Minister of Spain (1996-2004) *

Jorge Quiroga Jorge Fernando Quiroga Ramírez (born 5 May 1960), often referred to as Tuto, is a Bolivian industrial engineer and politician who served as the 62nd president of Bolivia from 2001 to 2002. A former member of Nationalist Democratic Action, he ...

: President of Bolivia (2001-2002) *

Ruth Richardson Ruth Margaret Richardson (born 13 December 1950) is a New Zealand retired politician of the National Party who served as Minister of Finance from 1990 to 1993. Her 1991 budget, which she dubbed the "Mother of all Budgets", formed the catalyst ...

: Finance Minister of New Zealand (1990-1993) *

Ben Sasse Benjamin Eric Sasse ( ; born February 22, 1972) is an American politician and academic administrator serving as the junior United States senator for Nebraska since 2015. He is a member of the Republican Party. Born in Plainview, Nebraska, Sass ...

: US Senator for Nebraska (2015–present) *

Michael Howard Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne (born Michael Hecht; 7 July 1941) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005. He previously held cabinet posi ...

: British Home Secretary (1993-1997) Executive board *Chairman:

Jon Moynihan Jonathan Patrick Moynihan OBE (born 21 June 1948) is a British businessman and venture capitalist, who served as the CEO and executive chairman of PA Consulting Group. Early life Moynihan was born on 21 June 1948 in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, E ...

(chairman and Co-Principal of Ipex Capital) *Depute chairman: Alan Halsall (Former joint chairman of Businesses for Britain) * Digby, Lord Jones of Birmingham Kb, Founding director of Digby Jones LLP, former Minister of State for Trade & Investment, former Director-General of the CBI *Dame

Helena Morrissey Helena Louise Morrissey, Baroness Morrissey, (; 22 March 1966), is a British financier and campaigner. Early life Morrissey was born in Bowdon, Cheshire, in 1966. She grew up in Alverstoke near Portsmouth, and was educated at Bishop Luffa Sch ...

, DBE, Former Head of Personal Investing at

Legal & General Legal & General Group plc, commonly known as Legal & General, is a British multinational financial services and asset management company headquartered in London, England. Its products and services include investment management, lifetime mortg ...

Investment Management *Brian Kingham, Entrepreneur, investor and founding chairman of Reliance Security Group * Jim Mellon, Entrepreneur, investor and chairman of Burnbrae *Max Rangeley, Manager of the Cobden Centre

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official websiteOfficial Twitter
Political and economic think tanks based in the United Kingdom Non-profit organisations based in London Organizations established in 2017 Commercial policy Free trade