2017 Winners
Winner of £50,000
Mark Feldner and Mathew Bonnon
Mark Feldner is a recent graduate with degrees in Law (BA, Cambridge) and Political Theory (MSc, LSE). He has gained work experience at several commercial law firms and has worked for the Cato Institute in Washington, DC as well as for the Austrian Trade Commission in London. Mathew Bonnon is in his final year studying Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Cambridge. He has recently returned from his year abroad in Japan, where he studied at Doshisha University in Kyoto. Mathew has gained professional experience in law and consulting and has worked in various countries, including Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and Germany. Their submission focuses on local tax freedom.
Download Fiscal Liberalisation
Highly Commended Prizes of £2,500
Dr Syed Kamall MEP
Syed was elected as the leader of the European Conservatives and Reformists Group, the third largest of 8 political groups in the European Parliament, in June 2014. He has represented London in the Parliament since 2005. Syed was born and grew up in London. He is married with two children at London schools. His policy idea relates to ‘friendly lending’.
Professor James Tooley
James is professor of education policy at Newcastle University. He is the author of The Beautiful Tree (Penguin), winner of the 2010 Sir Antony Fisher Memorial Prize, based on his ground-breaking research on low-cost private education. This research was awarded the gold prize in the first International Finance Corporation/Financial Times Private Sector Development Competition, and was profiled in an American PBS documentary alongside the work of Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus. Building on his research, Tooley has dedicated himself to creating models of innovative practice in low-cost private education. His policy idea is a chain of low cost private schools.
Download A Chain of Low-Cost Private Schools for the UK
Ben Clements
Ben recently graduated from the University of Manchester after reading for a degree in Chinese and Japanese, with honours being placed in the First Class. Since completing his studies in the summer of 2016, Ben undertook a four-month scholarship placement as a scholar for the British Council as part of their Generation UK China campaign in the Chinese city of Tianjin to further enhance his Mandarin Chinese studies. He was also a finalist of the IEA’s pioneering Brexit Prize competition in 2014. His policy idea is ensuring ‘every child counts’.
Student Prize Winner of £2,500
Ryan Khurana
Ryan is a final year Politics, Philosophy, and Economics student at the University of Manchester. He is a member of the European Students for Liberty and has contributed to various student papers on topics such as Health Economics, Foreign Policy, Inequality and Poverty issues, and Political Discourse. His policy idea is related to a ‘freedom of housing act’.
Download Towards Freer Housing