Has the Free Market Failed? A debate with Gary Stevenson

Has the Free Market Failed? A debate with Gary Stevenson

Join us for a compelling and high-stakes debate between two of the UK’s most thought-provoking voices on the future of our economic system.

Gary Stevenson, a former Citibank trader turned influencer and activist, has gained widespread attention for his outspoken criticism of neoliberalism and his call for a radical overhaul of the tax system. Stevenson argues that the concentration of wealth and power in the hands of the few has led to deep economic injustice, stagnation, and social division. Once dubbed the “best trader in the world,” Stevenson has since turned his platform toward exposing the structural flaws of the global economy and advocating for higher taxes on the wealthy.

Facing him across the stage is Dr Kristian Niemietz, Head of Political Economy and Editorial Director at the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA). A leading defender of free-market economics, Niemietz contends that neoliberalism has delivered unparalleled prosperity, opportunity, and freedom. He is the author of Socialism: The Failed Idea That Never Dies, and has written extensively on why market-based systems remain the best path to human flourishing.

The discussion will be chaired by Dr Paola Romero, guest teacher in the LSE Department of Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method, who holds a PhD in Political Economy from the London School of Economics. Dr Romero will guide the conversation through the key moral, philosophical, and practical questions underpinning today’s economic divide.