Oliver is the Executive Director of The New Zealand Initiative. Before joining the Initiative, he was a Research Fellow at the Centre for Independent Studies in Sydney, the Chief Economist at Policy Exchange in London, and an advisor in the UK House of Lords. Oliver holds a Master’s degree in Economics and Business administration and a PhD in Law from Bochum University in Germany.
Oliver is available to comment on all of the Initiative’s research areas.
Phone: +64 4 499 0790
Dear Mike, In a country where people often hold back opinions for fear of offending others, your breakfast show is a refreshing exception. I am a fan of your clarity and boldness (though, sadly, we still haven’t met). Read more
Thanks for tuning in to the New Zealand Initiative’s Freely Speaking podcast where the style is casual, the topics are important and the brakes are off. In this episode, around the table is executive director Oliver Hartwich, chief economist Eric Crampton, senior fellow Bryce Wilkinson and chief editor Nathan Smith. Read more
Oliver Hartwich wrote in his Newsroom column that he is looking forward to a defrosting of the trans-Atlantic relationship as a new US administration enters the White House. He discusses the details with Nathan Smith in this podcast. Read more
Just a few hours into the vote count of the US Presidential election, Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša sent out a congratulatory tweet – but to the wrong president-elect. “It’s pretty clear that American people have elected @realDonaldTrump @Mike_Pence for #4moreyears,” Janša wrote. Read more
In a year of bad news, the past few weeks were a welcome exception. Pfizer’s announcement of a potentially effective Covid-19 vaccine opens a path back to normal life. Read more
In a recent interview on Newstalk ZB, prime minister Jacinda Ardern said New Zealanders coming home after Covid-19 was a major factor in record levels of home lending. Oliver Hartwich explains to Mike Hosking why it is not correct to draw a straight line from high house prices to net migration. Read more
This episode of the Freely Speaking podcast features executive director Oliver Hartwich, chief economist Eric Crampton, senior economist Matt Burgess and senior fellow Bryce Wilkinson. The team unpicks the strange lack of deep conversation in New Zealand and why Kiwis seem so reluctant to talk about the big issues. Read more
One of the first management books I ever read was Tom Peters’ A Passion for Excellence. I must have received it in the late 1980s from a family friend. Read more
In this episode of the New Zealand Initiative’s “Freely Speaking” podcast, around the table is executive director Oliver Hartwich, chief economist Eric Crampton, senior economist Matt Burgess and senior fellow Bryce Wilkinson. The team unpacks the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s curious steps into climate change politics and mulls over the central bank's real mandate. Read more
There is something special about Adele, Madonna and Sia. Because these pop divas are only ever referred to by their first names. Read more
When Odysseus sailed the treacherous waters between the monsters Scylla and Charybdis, he just had to survive. Holding onto a fig tree, Odysseus eventually made it through. Read more
In an opinion piece in the NZ Herald, Oliver Hartwich argued that New Zealanders are actually quite unlucky right now. He discusses this column with Jesse Mulligan on Radio NZ and explains why he thinks we are going wrong and why we don't appear to know it. Read more
All eyes are on New Zealand. In the lead-up to the election, Time magazine admired our "calmer democracy." The World Health Organisation once again praised our Covid-19 management. Read more
The sense of relief was palpable as the long election campaign finally ended. It is even better that the result delivered a clear mandate without the need of compromises, deal-making and brinkmanship. Read more
Oliver Hartwich talks to Tom Swtizer on ABC radio about the NZ election and why voters chose health over wealth.
The New Zealand Initiative · Oliver Hartwich on the NZ election and why voters chose health over wealth Read more