OPINION

Every time I read another excitable media article about New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern, I am reminded of an old quip: ‘Viewed from a distance, everything is beautiful.’ That was Publius Cornelius Tacitus (AD 58-120). Were this Roman intellectual and historian alive today, he would make a great New York Times columnist. Read more

Everyone knows that the status quo with respect to housing is “unsustainable”. The Prime Minister now seems to recognise the need for fundamental change and the opposition has recently offered to work with the government to find non-partisan solutions. Read more

This week, Stuff’s Thomas Coughlan uncovered an extraordinary story of last-minute heroics by officials who demanded good practice on an important decision. As Cabinet prepared to make its final decision on the proposed Auckland light rail project in February 2020, Treasury intervened. Read more

It’s comforting to think that necessity is the mother of invention. By that account, come the time, the inventor will rise, and problems will be solved. Read more

New Zealand’s housing is a national catastrophe. House prices have gone up by 37% nationally since 2015, according to ANZ. Read more

If land use and housing regulations prevent metropolitan areas from growing up or out as demand for housing increases, there is only one avenue of adjustment left. Prices increase. Read more

Last week’s CPI figures, showing an annual inflation rate of 1.4% in the December quarter, were accompanied by a warning from the Council of Trade Unions’ economist Craig Renney. He noted that inflation hits the poor harder than other groups. Read more

On 1 February, the chair of the Climate Change Commission, Dr Rod Carr, will descend the mount with his first emissions budget. He will deliver not commandments but advice, the first draft of a plan for how New Zealand will cut emissions over the next 15 years. Read more

After a tumultuous four years, Joe Biden will this week raise his right hand and swear an oath to uphold the Constitution as the 46th President of the United States. Before then, President Trump will almost certainly use his power as President to issue pardons. Read more

As the world approaches the end of this annus horribilis, there is a sense of relief. Not just because 2020 will soon be history but also because the economic disaster could have been so much worse. Read more

Last week, the government finally released the Simpson-Roche report detailing the failures that led to August’s Covid outbreak in Auckland. Some of the failures, like inadequate testing regimes for MIQ staff and border workers, were entirely preventable. Read more

They thought banning migrant farm labour would boost wages for native-born farm workers. They were wrong. Read more

New Zealand needs better friends, if comments by other countries about our efforts to reduce emissions are to be believed. Last week, Newsroom reported “players like the United Kingdom and the European Union have promised much more ambitious cuts [in greenhouse gas emissions] and pledged not to use international offsets. Read more

Canada’s carbon tax is set to rise from its current $30 per tonne ($33 NZD) to $170 per tonne ($188 NZD) by 2030. A credible price on carbon is the strongest commitment a country can make in reducing carbon emissions. Read more

As that great philosopher Homer Simpson once said, “Just because I don’t care doesn’t mean I don’t understand.” For climate policy debates, it is a bit different. Most people do care about cutting carbon emissions, but they still do not understand how it works. Read more