Bryce is a Senior Fellow at The New Zealand Initiative, and also the Director of the Wellington-based economic consultancy firm Capital Economics. Prior to setting this up in 1997 he was a Director of, and shareholder in, First NZ Capital. Before moving into investment banking in 1985, he worked in the New Zealand Treasury, reaching the position of Director. Bryce holds a PhD in economics from the University of Canterbury and was a Harkness Fellow at Harvard University. He is a Fellow of the Law and Economics Association of New Zealand.
Bryce is available for comment on fiscal issues, our poverty, inequality and welfare research. He also has a strong background in public policy analysis including monetary policy, capital markets research and microeconomic advisory work.
Latest reports:
Walking the path to the next global financial crisis (2021)
Illusions of History: How misunderstanding the past jeopardises our future (2021)
Policy Point: A risky place to do business (2021)
Policy Point: Is climate change a key risk to global financial stability? (2020)
Roadmap for Recovery: Briefing to the Incoming Government (2020)
Pharmac: The right prescription? (2020)
Research Note: Doing whatever it takes with someone else’s money (2020)
Policy Point: FDI: Unjustified Urgency (2020)
Research Note: Deficit spending in a crisis: why there is no such thing as a free lunch (2020)
Research Note: Quantifying the wellbeing costs of Covid-19 (2020)
Research Note: How bad might the lockdown be for jobs and income? (2020)
Work in Progress: Why Fair Pay Agreements would be bad for labour (2019)
Scroll down to read the rest of Bryce's work.
Phone: +64 4 499 0790
Background Yesterday the Treasury hosted a seminar on New Zealand’s lagging productivity growth rate. It shared the slot with the New Zealand Productivity Commission (NZPC) and Motu, a Wellington-based research institute. Read more
This submission in response to Consultation on New Zealand Grocery Supply Code of Conduct is made by The New Zealand Initiative (the Initiative), a Wellington-based think tank supported primarily by major New Zealand businesses. Read more
This month’s Dollars & Sense asks business sector leaders what they’d like politicians to promise on the campaign trail. Dr Bryce Wilkinson was interviewed by NBR's Jonathan Mitchell. Read more
Parliament’s Environment Committee released its reports on the Natural and Built Environment and Spatial Planning Bills this week. The (Labour) majority recommends that modified Bills be enacted. Read more
Sean Plunket talks to Dr Bryce Wilkinson from the New Zealand Initiative about the 28% rise in public service staff since Labour won in 2017.
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With numbers of those employed in the public sector increasing by 28 percent, along with more top heavy well-paid managers and communication teams, and an increase in spending - a new report is questioning why the outcomes in government dominated sectors aren't performing better. An earlier study shows the best performing countries are capable of achieving the same public service outcomes as New Zealand for up to 49 percent fewer resources. Read more
Over thirteen thousand more full-time equivalent workers joined the public service from 2017 to 2022 – a 28% increase. It contrasts sharply with Australia’s modest increase. Read more
New Zealanders need a competent, productive, merit-based public service. Those attributes matter for effective government and, thereby, community wellbeing. Read more
Wellington (Thursday, 22 June 2023) – A new report by The New Zealand Initiative documents the grounds for concern about the public sector’s performance. It calls for those in charge to step up to learn from better-performing countries. Read more
The Green Party’s proposed wealth tax plays to greed and envy. It blithely proposes that everyone can be lifted out of poverty by imposing a heavy wealth tax on a mere 0.7% of the population. Read more
When I was a lad in the 1950s, I absorbed from adults the notion that it was shameful to be reduced to applying for a state handout. Self-reliance was virtuous. Read more
Last week’s government Budget increased projected government operating spending over the next four years by $8.4 billion while projected revenue fell by $10.7 billion. Projected government borrowing rose by $20 billion. Read more
The state sector is widely failing to meet the public’s expectations. One problem is inadequate accountability due to confused objectives. Read more
In this thought-provoking episode, the Initiative’s economists – Dr Oliver Hartwich, Dr Eric Crampton, Dr Tony Burton, and Dr Bryce Wilkinson – dive into the debate over whether Australia is a better option for skilled talent. They discuss the current challenges faced by New Zealand in terms of health, education, and infrastructure, and how the nation's performance is deteriorating relative to Australia. Read more
An IRD report on effective rates of tax attracted much public attention last week. It was launched by the Minister of Revenue, David Parker. Read more