Data from the OECD reveals extraordinary increases in the cost of housing in most countries. Since 2000, house prices in OECD countries have gone up 39% after inflation across the OECD. Read more
Bubbles are beautiful but fragile things. Not letting the new one break matters. Read more
After much finger-pointing, the Government has finally found the real culprits behind high house prices. Yes, it was the evil ‘speculators’ all along. Read more
It is easy to dismiss critics of the Climate Change Commission’s plan to reduce emissions as opposed to any action at all. Too easy. Read more
If you want to get an idea of the European Union’s ability to make good decisions and implement them swiftly, you could look at its Covid vaccination rollout. But if that is too depressing, you could also consider the farce around Europe’s Daylight Savings Time. Read more
Three roads bounded the farm where I grew up in Southern Manitoba. To the East was the highway. Read more
Local government is fundamentally broken because of the way councils are financed, how the costs and benefits of urban growth are divvied up, and the incentives thus created. Councils bear the costs of growth. Read more
Currently, every house auction is a contest between competing bidders. The auction confronts each bidder with the last price bid. Read more
According to Long’s Axiom, an elephant is a mouse built to government specifications. The saying is a corollary to the old gag about a camel being a horse designed by a committee. Read more
One year ago, in a desperate rush, the government launched the wage subsidy scheme. It had to be done in a hurry; every other option was worse. Read more
This month events at either end of the country highlighted a fundamental failure afflicting New Zealand’s biggest pre-Covid export earner: tourism. On 10 March, Auckland Council heard submissions on when it should reintroduce its Accommodation Provider Targeted Rate (APTR), which is uses to fund Auckland events and destination marketing. Read more
Eighteen months ago, the Government announced a curriculum change making it compulsory for all schools to teach “key aspects” of New Zealand history. The Ministry of Education was tasked with creating a new curriculum to “span the full range of New Zealanders’ experiences… with contemporary issues directly linked to major events of the past.” Asking the Ministry of Education to draft a compulsory New Zealand History curriculum for school children was always fraught with risk. Read more
Did you hear that LEGO released a minifigure of our PM. It’s big news. Read more
It is hard to know where to begin, there is so much wrong with the Government’s housing package presented on Tuesday. I leave it to my colleague David Law to explain why the measures introduced will hurt housing affordability and supply. Read more
After eight weeks of poring over the 847 pages of analysis from the Climate Change Commission, two findings stand out. First, the Commission shows current policies, including the Emissions Trading Scheme (“ETS”), will deliver our 2050 emissions targets. Read more