LFMI

After three years of decline, illegal trade in alcohol is on the increase, shows a research by the Lithuanian Free Market Institute (LFMI). According to LFMI, this year the shadow economy occupied 24% of the spirits market in Lithuania, representing an increase by two-percentage points since 2015.

LFMI launches Employment Flexibility Index 2018 for the EU and OECD. The index is based on the World Bank’s Doing Business data on labor market regulation and covers a set of indicators on hiring, working hours, redundancy rules, and redundancy costs.

Politicians should ask themselves if depriving citizens of their right to choose high quality reasonably priced services while putting private businesses at a competitive disadvantage is the path Lithuania should follow.

The current social pillars are divisive, but the divide is not across the “East-West” lines or even the “liberal-socialist” lines; rather, it goes along the “reality-delusion” lines. Sadly, the proposed social pillars will not make delusional politicians to accept reality

Published in 2015 by the Lithuanian Free Market Institute, the economics textbook Economics in 31 Hours has transformed the way of teaching and learning economics in Lithuania. Already in its fifth edition, the textbook has reached over 53 thousand students in 463 secondary schools and nearly 500 teachers.

Lithuania has long been praised for its rankings in the categories of starting a business, registering property, and enforcing contracts, but it has also been criticized for a heavy administrative burden and red tape pervading the areas of dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, and paying taxes.

A careful re-examination of the petition over these past two years reflects the role that an organised civil society voice can play in EU policy- and decision-making processes. It also recognises the network as an authoritative source of expertise on EU policy issues.

Vilnius claims the top position in the Lithuanian Municipal Performance Index for a third year in a row, surpassing Klaipėda and Kaunas city municipalities. Though Vilnius has maintained the top ranking, the port city of Klaipėda is catching up fast.

This Position Paper is a response to the Reflection Paper on the Future of EU Finances by the European Commission.The goal of this Paper is to evaluate the outlook for EU Budget, its trends and ongoing discussions and to present EU budget reform solutions that would change Europe, make it prosperous.

The Lithuanian Free Market Institute publishes a handbook on public policy analysis Government Against Scarcity: How it Changes Who We Are, focusing on four areas – labor relations, money, consumption habits, and social support – where the government is increasingly restricting individual freedom, choice, and initiative.