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The Institute of Economic Affairs is delighted to announce the launch of the IEA Brexit Prize. The first prize of €100,000 will be awarded to the best blueprint for the UK after the EU.

The IEA believes that we need to give serious consideration to how the UK could have a free and prosperous economy outside the EU given that exit is a serious possibility after the next election.

Entrants are asked to imagine a referendum has resulted in an “Out” vote and Her Majesty’s Government has triggered Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. Against this background, they are invited to compose a Blueprint for Britain outside the EU, covering the process of withdrawal and the post-exit repositioning of the UK in the global trading and governance systems.

Submissions are invited from individuals, groups of individuals, academia and corporate bodies such as consultancy firms, law firms, accounting firms, think-tanks and investment banks.

Judging panel:

• Nigel Lawson (Chairman), The Rt Hon Lord Lawson of Blaby, former Chancellor of the Exchequer;
• Prof. Philip Booth (facilitator), Institute of Economic Affairs and Cass Business School;
• Roger Bootle, founder of Capital Economics, a Specialist Advisor to the House of Commons Treasury Committee and an Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries;
• Dr Stephen Davies, Institute of Economic Affairs;
• Tim Frost, a governor of the LSE and director of Markit and Cairn Capital;
• Ruth Lea, Non-Executive Director of the Arbuthnot Banking Group;
• Prof Martin Ricketts, Professor of Economic Organisation at the University of Buckingham;
• David Starkey, British constitutional historian and a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries in London: and
• Gisela Stuart, MP for Birmingham Edgbaston and editor of The House Magazine.

Commenting on the Prize, Chairman of the judging panel, Lord Lawson, said:

"I welcome the IEA's initiative in holding this competition. Now that we have been promised an in-out referendum on Britain and the EU in 2017, it is essential that this momentous decision is preceded by a well-informed debate. The winning entries in this competition will be an important contribution to that process.

"To date much of this debate has generated more heat than light. It is crucial that we should look into the policy framework that would be needed if Britain decides to leave the EU.

“The creation of the Eurozone, of which the UK is (quite rightly) not a member, has fundamentally changed both the nature of the European Union and the case for the UK remaining a member of it."

Mark Littlewood, Director General at the Institute of Economic Affairs, said:

“It is time for the EU debate to be dominated by serious thought rather than bluster. There is an urgent need to consider the alternatives for Britain’s economic and constitutional position if we were to choose to leave the EU. Exit from the European Union now has to be considered to be a serious possibility. The task of mapping out a successful future on the outside requires serious thought and requires it now. “

Notes to editors:

Initial submissions will be around 2,000 words in length. The competition’s initial judging panel will then invite the authors of around twenty of those entries to make full submissions of between 10,000 and 20,000 words within a further four months. The deadline for entries is Monday 16 September 2013.

For more detailed information about the remit and entry criteria please visit www.iea.org.uk/brexit.

To arrange an interview about the IEA Brexit Prize, please contact Ruth Porter, Communications Director, on 020 7799 8920 or 07751 717 781.

The mission of the Institute of Economic Affairs is to improve understanding of the fundamental institutions of a free society by analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems.

The IEA is a registered educational charity and independent of all political parties.