The record net migration loss of 60,100 New Zealand citizens in the year to May 2024 is an orange warning light for New Zealand. But fears that it represents a worrying brain drain are statistically premature. Read more

In a dramatic move this week, the government replaced the board of Health New Zealand (Te Whatu Ora) with a commissioner. Dramatic but not much of a surprise. Read more

“And some things that should not have been forgotten were lost.” Gandalf This week and last week, The Listener ran five articles revisiting New Zealand’s economic reforms from 1984 to 1993. Four of those articles had little good to say about them, or the people who led them with such clarity, courage and determination. Read more

New Zealand has long enjoyed its reputation as one of the world's most transparent and business-friendly nations. Does it deserve this reputation? Read more

Last week the government announced a comprehensive review of the country's Workplace Health and Safety regulation. There are good reasons for it to do so. Read more

Eminent New Zealander, Sir Roger Douglas has renewed his case for radical changes to fiscal policy in the last three weeks. The issues are relevant to Budget 2024. Read more

Last weekend, deeply disturbing allegations emerged that the privacy of New Zealanders’ census data was grossly violated in the lead-up to the 2023 general election. Media reports include allegations that confidential personal information collected during the 2023 census on behalf of Statistics New Zealand was illicitly copied for private benefit. Read more

If a picture contains a thousand words, this column is going to run well over our normal word limit. But the charts do say a lot, so we’ll let the charts do most of the talking. Read more

The Independent Review of Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities lays bare New Zealand’s housing mess. Decent housing is fundamental to wellbeing. Read more

It is fashionable to see climate as the main threat to the future quality of life of young people today. The word “climate” is commonly followed by “crisis” or “emergency”. Read more