Uncategorized Archives - Page 2 of 5 - Centre for Enterprise Markets and Ethics

February 11, 2026

Re-imagining Capitalism for the 21st Century

Re-imagining Capitalism for the 21st Century Chris Pinney Introduction Few would disagree that capitalism is the most powerful economic system humanity has developed. Capitalist societies have experienced unprecedented economic and social progress, creating the highest standard of living the world has ever seen. It is the principles behind capitalism, such as individual rights, private property...

February 11, 2026

Instilling Values in Business

By Brian Griffiths

Instilling Values in Business Lord Griffiths of Fforestfach I am a great admirer of Alasdair MacIntyre. He is one of the world’s greatest living philosophers, invariably provocative and controversial but never without interest or depth of thought. A few years ago he gave a lecture with the arresting title ‘The Irrelevance of Business Ethics’. He...

February 10, 2026

Is the Non-Executive Director Worth Saving? (5/5)

Conclusions and Recommendations If these observations are accurate, NEDs face such potentially severe liabilities, and the mismatch of expectations is so great, that there will be problems in recruitment and retention as well as more serious issues. A role may have been undermined that serves business and society with high standards of corporate governance. High-quality...

February 10, 2026

Is the Non-Executive Director Worth Saving (4/5)

What Do We Really Want from a Non-Executive Director? The public narrative around NEDs illustrates a real tension between a proper desire to hold directors to account and a lack of understanding of the nature and complexity of the NED role. Complaints about ‘cosy clubs’, ‘asleep at the wheel’ or ‘overpaid’ NEDs will often feature...

February 10, 2026

Is the Non-Executive Director Worth Saving? (3/5)

The Companies Act and Directors What expectations are set out in law in respect of directors? The legal provisions are found in sections 170–177 of the Companies Act 2006. Section 172 is intended to clarify the wider expectations and responsibilities relating to a director, who must act in ‘good faith’, and in acting for the...

February 10, 2026

Is the Non-Executive Director Worth Saving? (2/5)

How Have We Got Here? The current debates around the roles, responsibilities and liabilities of NEDs are not occurring in a vacuum: as recently as October 2023 the Insolvency Service’s disqualification action against the NEDs of Carillion (on behalf of the Secretary of State) was dropped a few days before the trial was due to...

January 28, 2026

Nigel Biggar: Does Theology Have a Role in Public Life?

How ‘Secular’ is the Public Square? Habermas versus Augustine There is a view that the public square is ‘secular’ and that therefore religious believers should leave their baffling theology at home and learn to speak sensible, non-theological language in public. One well-known expression of this view came from the eminent German philosopher and public intellectual, […]

November 4, 2025

Markets and the Environment (Conclusion)

Conclusion In the next decades increasing shares of personal and societal wealth willbe spent mitigating environmental harms. These harms are often blamed on the ramifications of the market system. To some extent this is true but the complaints too often ignore the human betterment deriving from the activity that results in environmental degradation. At its...

November 4, 2025

Markets and the Environment (Chapter 3)

Environmental Economics and Improving Environmental Policy Economics has become less a series of doctrines than … an engine of analysis in which techniques, ranging from the theory of public goods and externalities, ideas about the role of property rights, negotiation, incentives, and mechanism design, are used together with ideas from other disciplines to work out...

November 3, 2025

Markets and the Environment (Chapter 2)

Coase, Ostrom and the Economics of Government Action What this theory [mid-century neoclassical welfare economics] demonstrated, in a nutshell, was that perfect markets work perfectly, imperfect markets work imperfectly, and perfect government can cause imperfect markets to also function perfectly.[1] Steven Medema The theme of Chapter 1 was how features of some goods...

October 31, 2025

Markets and the Environment (Chapter 1)

Economic Theory and Market Failure: A Synopsis To speak about economics as applied to environmental harms, one must know something about economics generally and its conceptual frameworks as applied to policy. While possibly seeming dry and abstruse, these fundamental concepts have direct relevance, including for those more interested in environmental than economic issues. However, this...