The 2023 election highlighted flaws in New Zealand’s electoral system that create uncertainty for business and undermine democratic accountability. My research report MMP after 30 years: Time for electoral reform?, investigates these inefficiencies and how to address them. Read more
In this episode, Oliver Hartwich talks to Nick Clark about his new report reviewing New Zealand’s MMP electoral system after 30 years. They examine quirks that have emerged over recent elections — from delayed results that stall coalition talks to by-elections creating extra seats, overhangs expanding Parliament beyond 120 MPs, and outdated election-day restrictions despite most people voting early. Read more
This webinar launches “MMP After 30 Years: Time for Electoral Reform?”, a report by Nick Clark proposing practical updates to make New Zealand’s MMP work better. Hosted by Dr Oliver Hartwich and featuring David Farrar (foreword author; political commentator and pollster), the discussion canvasses a four-year parliamentary term, expanding Parliament to 170 MPs with stronger select committees, moving to a 50:50 electorate–list split to avoid overhangs, modestly lowering the party-vote threshold while retaining the one-seat pathway, abolishing by-elections (filling vacancies from lists), repealing waka-jumping rules, and streamlining special-vote processing with consistent campaign rules across the whole voting period — drawing on international comparisons and lessons from the 2023 election. Read more
Wellington (Wednesday, 29 October 2025) - New Zealand's three-year parliamentary term is too short for effective government and the country needs more MPs to keep politicians accessible to voters, according to new research examining 30 years of MMP in New Zealand. “MMP has delivered fairer and more representative parliaments, but it’s time for an upgrade,” says Nick Clark, Senior Fellow at The New Zealand Initiative and author of the report. Read more
1. SUMMARY 1.1 The Initiative welcomes and supports this inquiry. Read more
New Zealand's three-year parliamentary term is too short for effective government and the country needs more MPs to keep politicians accessible to voters. “MMP has delivered fairer and more representative parliaments, but it’s time for an upgrade,” says Nick Clark, Senior Fellow at The New Zealand Initiative and author of our report examining 30 years of MMP in New Zealand. Read more
We all know the Greek myth about Sisyphus, condemned to roll his boulder endlessly uphill, only to watch it tumble down each time he nears the summit. It comes to mind when I look at Louise Upston, the minister responsible for welfare (or “social development” as we call it in New Zealand). Read more
In August 2025, the Government announced the biggest reform to New Zealand’s building consent system in two decades. The problem? Read more
AI chatbot Claude is a friendly chap. Knowledgeable and helpful, too. Read more
Labour wants to funnel Crown dividends into a new sovereign wealth fund restricted to domestic investments. The stated goal is to boost domestic risk capital, but the design is terrible. Read more
For almost all of human history, life was a grind. Most people lived and died poor, generation after generation. Read more
This month’s Nobel Prize in Economics arrives at an opportune moment. The award to Joel Mokyr, Philippe Aghion and Peter Howitt for having explained innovation-driven economic growth provides a salutary reminder about what drives prosperity. Read more
Every country has sacred cows: government programmes beyond criticism even when failing. Britain has the NHS, Australia has Medicare. Read more
In this episode, Michael talks with Sir Nick Gibb, who served as England’s Minister for Schools for a decade, about the evidence-based reforms that transformed English education through systematic phonics, a knowledge-rich curriculum, and structured maths teaching. They explore how progressive education ideology led to England’s earlier decline in international rankings, the cognitive science underpinning effective teaching, and New Zealand’s promising early results from adopting similar reforms. To listen to our latest podcasts, please subscribe to The New Zealand Initiative podcast on iTunes, Spotify or The Podcast App. Read more
There’s a very old saying that taxation is the science of plucking the chicken without making it squawk. The earliest form of the saying seems to go back to a 1766 letter from French economist Anne Robert Jacques Turgot to David Hume – though the exact origins are disputed. Read more
