Bryce is a Senior Fellow at The New Zealand Initiative and the Director of the Wellington-based economic consultancy firm Capital Economics.
Prior to setting up his consultancy in 1997, he was director, 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.
Phone: +64 4 499 0790
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
The record net outflow of New Zealanders migrating to Australia and further afield should be seen as an "orange light" rather than a red light, according to a research note by The New Zealand Initiative. The report, Are Kiwis fleeing?, examines recent migration trends and finds that while the net outflow of 60,100 New Zealand citizens in the year to May 2024 is significant, it is currently offset by a near-record inflow of migrants who are likely more highly qualified than the average New Zealander. Read more
Wellington (Tuesday, 23 July 2024) - The record net outflow of New Zealanders migrating to Australia and further afield should be seen as an "orange light" rather than a red light, according to a research note by The New Zealand Initiative. The report, Are flying Kiwis fleeing?, examines recent migration trends and finds that while the net outflow of 60,100 New Zealand citizens in the year to May 2024 is significant, it is currently offset by a near-record inflow of migrants who are likely more highly qualified than the average New Zealander. 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
Dr Bryce Wilkinson talks to Leah Panapa on The Platform about BUdget 2023. Watch below. 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
Imagine two farmers, each with a plot of land. One farmer finds ways to make his land just 1% more productive each year - a bit better irrigation, a new crop rotation strategy, or a slight improvement in fertiliser use. Read more
The new Government’s Budget Policy Statement, released yesterday, reflects the daunting fiscal challenges inherited from the previous Labour-led Government’s tax-deficit-and-spend policies. We empathise with the current Government’s predicament, having to navigate the consequences of excessive spending, high inflation, and a recession. Read more
My research note last week highlighted a massive mystery. Between 31 March 2009 and 30 September 2023, New Zealanders spent $158 billion more overseas than we earned on current account. Read more