OPINION

It is hard to be funny when you are an economist. Thankfully, we have the Reserve Bank. Read more

What passes for economics in Wellington has seemed increasingly out of step with the academic consensus. Ideas long dismissed by academic economists as mad or harmful become trendy in Wellington circles. Read more

The dictionary defines taxonomy as a system of classification, especially in biology. But as any biologist will tell you, this is not always a straightforward task. Read more

Since last week’s announcement, Finance Minister Grant Robertson’s proposed social unemployment insurance has been criticised across the political divide. Some complaints relate simply to timing. Read more

A dark part of me hopes the government’s employment insurance scheme is enacted exactly as proposed. It will be terrible. Read more

The OECD’s country report for New Zealand always reveals sobering home truths. This year’s was no exception. Read more

Officially, New Zealand governments welcome overseas investment. In practice, they do much to thwart it, for no good reason. Read more

After weeks of waiting, a heavily abridged report into Downing Street’s party culture was finally published on Monday. The investigation was meant to determine whether UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his staff broke their own Government’s lockdown rules. Read more

Any student of classics would be familiar with the ancient Greek myth of Daedalus and his son Icarus. The pair used wax and feather wings to escape from the island of Crete. Read more

Toward the end of the classic Vietnam war film Apocalypse Now, Captain Willard finally found the object of his quest: the mad Colonel Kurtz. Kurtz asked whether Willard agreed with their superiors who believed that Kurtz’s methods were unsound. Read more

Last week’s announcement that inflation is at its highest level in more than 30 years was a shock. Consumer prices rose by 5.9% last year, the largest increase since June 1990. Read more

We are still five days ahead of Groundhog Day (celebrated on 2 February each year), yet we feel like we have been here before. Only Punxsutawney Phil and Andie MacDowell are missing. Read more

When something seems too good to be true, it usually is. New Zealand's apparently record-low unemployment figures are a classic case. Read more

Prudence is a virtue. Aristotle considered it among the nine most important. Read more

This is going to be a busy and difficult year for government. It is planning major changes to the health system, tertiary education, local government (the ‘Three Waters’), environmental rules and wage setting arrangements - while also struggling with COVID and the disaster which is housing policy. Read more