The Icelandic Economic Miracle
16 November 2007 has a special significance for the Icelanders because it is the 200th birthday of Iceland’s great national poet Jonas Hallgrimsson. He composed the powerful and celebrated poem „Gunnarsholmi“ about an Icelander who wanted to remain in his country instead of leaving. While the historicity of the poem is debatable, its core of truth is that Iceland has to offer such conditions that its sons and daughters want to stay, rather than leave. Which are these conditions? For the last sixteen years, since 1991, Iceland has implemented sweeping economic reforms, extensive privatisation, and tax cuts, the abolition of government subsidies to politically powerful enterprises, and the formation of private use rights to the fish stocks (individual transferable quotas). These reforms have been quite successful: Iceland is now ranked as one of the freest and richest countries in the world.
The Confederation of Icelandic Employers, the Social Science Research Institute of the University of Iceland and Morgunbladid newspaper are together organising a meeting on the Icelandic Economic Miracle and how it can continue. The speaker is one of the world’s best-known economists, Professor Arthur Laffer, after whom the Laffer Curve is named. Professor Gudmundur Magnusson, one of Iceland’s most distinguished economic scholars, and former Rector of the University of Iceland, will respond.
Conference 26 July 2007: Cutting Taxes to Increase Prosperity
Colloquium 14 September 2007: Iceland as a Financial Centre
Book 10 January 2008: Cutting Taxes to Increase Prosperity
Paper 7 December 2007: Has Iceland Abandoned the Nordic Model?
