The first is a fringe meeting at the Conservative conference in Manchester this very Sunday. Hosted by the Adam Smith Institute:
The Individual v The State - The battle for lifestyle freedom
Other panelists:
Philip Davies MP
Daniel Hamilton, Director – Big Brother Watch
Alex Massie, freelance journalist – Spectator blogger
Date: 2nd October 2011
Time: 5.00pm to 7.00pm
Location: Radisson Edwardian, Stanley / Livingstone Suite, 38-40 Peter Street, Manchester, M2 5GP (outside the security zone)
RSVP: sally@adamsmith.org
Food and drinks will be provided
The second is also a fringe event in Manchester and will be something of a rematch of this summer's Voices of Freedom debate in which Peter Hitchens defended the authoritarian argument against smokers (and drinkers, and motorists, and...). Should be lively.
Civil Liberties Up in Smoke: what rights do smokers have in a free society?
Venue: Barbirolli Room, Bridgewater Hall, Lower Mosley Street
Other participants:
Mark Littlewood, Institute of Economic Affairs
Peter Hitchens, Mail on Sunday
Dan Hamilton, Big Brother Watch
Monday 3 October, 4.30-5.30pm
Towards the end of the month I will be back in London for the Battle of Ideas for 'Seduced by Stats?', a discussion of how statistics are misused and misrepresented by special interest groups. Or, at least, that's what I'll be discussing.
Speakers:
Timandra Harkness
—journalist and writer; co-writer and performer, Edinburgh Festival Fringe smash hit Your Days Are Numbered: the maths of death
Bryan Joseph
—actuarial partner, London, PwC
Chris Snowdon
—author, Velvet Glove, Iron Fist and The Spirit Level Delusion: fact-checking the Left's new theory of everything
Chair:
Hilary Salt
—founder, First Actuarial plc; chair, Manchester Salon
Saturday 29 October, 12.15pm until 1.15pm, Lecture Theatre 2, Royal College of Arts
Full blurb here.
