OPINION

The Department for Education in England recently issued guidance to teachers to remind them of legal requirements to be politically impartial when they teach sensitive topics such as the legacy of the British Empire. Commenting on the guidance, Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi said “contested theories and opinions must not be presented to young people as facts”. Read more

The future is notoriously hard to forecast. Just dial the clock back two years and try finding an expert predicting a year after the start of the pandemic that New Zealand would be suffering labour shortages. Read more

Putin’s war is a tragedy for Ukraine. Yet its economic implications will be felt far beyond Ukraine’s borders for years to come. Read more

From the Ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans to the masterful wit of Jonathan Swift and Frederic Bastiat, authors have used satire to highlight follies and vices, lampoon political figures, and point out pressing societal issues. Fast forward to our modern age of content warnings, censorship, and accusations of fake news. Read more

I am excited to have commenced work at the New Zealand Initiative in early March. I come from ten years as an academic in the Faculty of Education at Victoria University of Wellington. Read more

In late January, I wrote a column arguing a Russian invasion of Ukraine was not a foregone conclusion (Russia has won the war without firing a single shot, 25 January). I wish my cautious optimism had been proven right. Read more

The Commerce Commission’s final report into retail grocery competition, released this morning, recommends legalising new grocery stores. While it is not formally illegal to start a new supermarket chain, zoning and regulatory barriers make it effectively impossible. Read more

The latest survey of New Zealand economists provides a clear steer for climate policy. Rather than use policies like fuel economy standards for imported vehicles, which target emissions already covered by the Emissions Trading Scheme’s cap on net emissions, the government should simply tighten the cap more quickly. Read more

Two years ago, the coronavirus pandemic took most of the world by surprise. Twenty-four months later, Russia's invasion of Ukraine caught us equally off-guard. Read more

Even in ordinary times, it is difficult to govern a country well. During a crisis, it requires much greater skill, experience and judgment. Read more

It was all going so well for Vladmir Putin. In the days after he invaded Ukraine, the West’s response was predictably tepid. Read more

In less than a week since Russia invaded Ukraine, the war has turned German politics upside down. We are used to seeing about-faces, changes of mind, and U-turns in politics. Read more

The government’s Covid testing system has fallen apart and we are now largely flying blind, as Siouxsie Wiles put it. But it is worse than that. Read more

Tolerance for legitimate protest is one thing. The current illegal occupation of public and private property around Parliament is another. Read more

The coming weeks of Covid are going to be very grim. Kiwis became far too accustomed to waiting for Government guidance rather than weighing risks ourselves. Read more