Major new book published restating the moral case for capitalism, with contributions from eleven leading economists, philosophers and theologians

A major new book restating the moral, philosophical and theological case for free-market capitalism has been published by the Institute of Economic Affairs.

On Morality, Human Behaviour and Economics, edited by Professor Juan Castañeda, Director of the Vinson Centre for the Public Understanding of Economics and Entrepreneurship at the University of Buckingham, and the Lord Kamall, brings together eleven leading economists, philosophers and theologians to make the moral case for free markets at a moment when consecutive governments have presided over more than a decade of stagnant growth and rising public scepticism of capitalism.

The book is the first volume in the new Vinson Centre Series and emerges from a joint conference between the IEA and the Vinson Centre for the Public Understanding of Economics and Entrepreneurship at the University of Buckingham, held in November 2024.

Drawing on philosophy, theology, economic history, sociology and political science, the contributors argue that classical liberals have allowed their opponents a clear run of the moral terrain. The volume sets out to redress the balance, returning to the foundational arguments of thinkers from Adam Smith and Bernard Mandeville to Friedrich Hayek and reapplying them to contemporary questions of inequality, welfare, business culture, religious ethics and the relationship between markets and the state.

Across twelve chapters, the volume addresses:

The Revd Dr Richard Turnbull on why those making the case for the market are failing to do so — and what an intellectual defence of market principles should look like

Mikko Arevuo (Cranfield) on Adam Smith’s moral philosophy and his implicit theory of distributive justice

Pedro Schwartz (Universidad Camilo José Cela) on Bernard Mandeville, spontaneous order, and the division of labour

Elena Leontjeva (Lithuanian Free Market Institute) on capitalism, scarcity and the moral significance of “lack”

Benedikt Koehler (IEA) on profit, wealth and private property in Islam, Christianity and Judaism

Philip Booth (St Mary’s University) on the economics of Pope Francis, and why his concern for the poor transcends the conventional left–right divide

Billy Christmas (West Virginia University) on the economic teachings of the early Church Fathers and private property

Paul Dragos Aligica (Mercatus Center) on Hayek’s concept of catallaxy as a solution to the problem of value pluralism

Martin Vander Weyer (Business Editor, The Spectator) on why Britain has never truly embraced capitalism, and the lessons of nineteenth-century Manchester and Birmingham

Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (President of the Jobs Foundation) on the practical, theological and historical case for business

Dr Chris O’Leary (Manchester Metropolitan University) on a classical liberal vision for a limited welfare state, based on a negative income tax and voluntary mutual aid associations

The Lord Kamall, co-editor of the volume and Honorary Research Fellow at the Vinson Centre at the University of Buckingham, said:

“For too long, the moral arguments for free markets have been left unmade. This book is an attempt to put that right. The contributors draw on philosophy, theology and economics to remind readers that markets are rooted in moral and ethical traditions that predate modern economics. If we want to renew faith in free enterprise, we must first be willing to defend it on moral principles.”

Professor Juan Castañeda, Director of the Vinson Centre at the University of Buckingham, said:

“The expansion of markets and trade has brought greater living standards to billions of people across the world. Critics of markets often claim that this is driven by greed. As we learn from classical political economists from the 18th and 19th c, the development of the market economy is rooted in moral principles, and this is precisely the approach the book explores.”

Lord Hannan, Director General of the Institute of Economic Affairs, said:

“Anyone can make the practical case for free markets. They have observably and consistently delivered higher living standards than any alternative model. What is more important is to make the moral case for free markets, which is what our authors here do. Capitalism doesn’t just make us better off; it makes us better people.”