There is currently a concerted campaign by a coalition of left-wing groups, green zealots, remainers and left-wing journalists to delegitimise right-of-centre campaigns and think tanks. Any right-of-centre voice is to be shouted down. It is a tribute to the effectiveness of the Institute of Economic Affairs that they are currently the primary target.

It is a fact of life that people in the private sector prefer to be in the private sector and tick the ‘no publicity’ box. Who can blame them? They would otherwise be on the receiving end of pretty nasty campaigns, potential commercial boycotts and the unwelcome attention of social media’s resident idiots. Look at the ‘class war’ harassment of Jacob Rees-Mogg’s children, or just some of the horrendous replies to tweets by the IEA’s Kate Andrews, the Taxpayers’ Alliance’s Chloe Westley, the Adam Smith Institute’s Sophie Jarvis, or the CPS’s Ems Barr whenever they appear on TV. Why would you volunteer for that abuse?

Right-of-centre organisations tend in consequence to be less transparent about their funding, allowing those who donate to make decisions regarding their own privacy. The charitable trusts and foundations that fund them do generally allow their support to be publicised, businesses and individuals often prefer not. That is not an ideal state of affairs. It lets the left paint them as funded by scary sounding “dark money”, rather than generous civic minded individuals who just prefer to remain anonymous in the circumstances. The IEA is trying to go some way to answering the question as to who funds them by breaking it down into categories. Full marks for rebutting allegations of “dark money” with a dark infographic bordering on trolling…

If it helps set the ball rolling, Guido would like to answer the question of “Who funds the IEA?” by saying that, in a very tiny way, he does. Other donors should be proud to say they do as well…