Eamonn Butler and Madsen Pirie win the IEA's 2010 National Free Enterprise Award

We are a couple of weeks late with this but congratulations to Eamonn Butler and Madsen Pirie of the Adam Smith Institute for winning the Institute of Economic Affairs' 2010 National Free Enterprise Award.

The IEA declared: "Few have done more to develop and promote free-market ideas."

Previous winners, reports Simon Clark, include Lord Lawson, Richard Branson, Lord King, Baroness Thatcher, Lord Forte and Sir Freddie Laker.

[The Award is a large silver statue representing enterprise escaping the dead hand of the state which the winner gets to keep for one year. The winner also receives the permanent gift of a small inscribed replica.]