A few weeks ago, soon after checking into my hotel in Varanasi, I got a knock at my door. It was the manager, asking if I’d noticed that my visa was about to run out in precisely twenty-four hours. Read more
Jordan Peterson’s latest message to his followers is a masterclass in rhetorical sleight of hand. Peterson delivered a keynote address at last week’s ARC conference in Sydney, which was also broadcast on Sky News Australia. Read more
My recent column, “Parliament should rein in our runaway Supreme Court,” sounded the alarm on a troubling trend. Our highest court is overstepping its bounds, reshaping laws in ways that challenge Parliament’s authority. Read more
Only a few days after the University of Auckland’s so-called academic freedom policy was rejected by the university’s Senate, Victoria University of Wellington’s own academic freedom policy has come to light. Victoria’s policy is likely a response to the government’s stated intention to make such policies a condition for government funding. Read more
In February this year, I wrote about a surprising decision from New Zealand’s Supreme Court (Absurd: New Zealand courts can now decide on climate change, 5 February 2024). The Court allowed a climate change case against seven large companies to proceed, despite New Zealand’s emissions being a mere rounding error in global terms. This decision was not an isolated incident. Read more
If you haven’t yet read Aaron Smale’s series on abuse in care, you really should. New Zealand doesn’t have a Pulitzer Prize for investigative journalism, but the series would rightly be up for nomination. Read more
Fertility rates have been dropping for a very long time, but the recent plunge is precipitous. Neil Johnson, Professor of Obstetrics & Gynaecology at Flinders University, took us through the numbers at a panel session for Fertility Counts Aotearoa at Parliament last week. Read more
Picture a country where unelected judges, not elected politicians, make the laws. Where courts rewrite statutes they do not like and reshape long-standing legal rules based on their views of ‘society’s changing values.’ Sound far-fetched? Read more
BusinessDesk’s Pattrick Smellie had the best synopsis of New Zealand First’s announcement on foreign direct investment this weekend: “it was less important for what it said than for the fact that Peters said it.” The Overseas Investment Act has placed New Zealand among the developed world’s least hospitable climates for foreign investment. Other countries recognise investment as a benefit to be sought. Read more
It is a Monday afternoon in Wellington. Journalists gather in the Beehive’s theatrette for the weekly post-cabinet media briefing. Read more
Imagine a game of tug-of-war in which one team steadily gains ground. Now, picture our legal system as a rope, with Parliament on one end and the Supreme Court on the other. Read more
The United States offers a stark warning of the consequences of an activist judiciary. The outsized role of the U.S. Read more
There are easier jobs than NATO Secretary-General. And if you have just finished almost 14 years as Dutch PM, it is hardly a downscaling option. Read more
As New Zealanders face rising costs of living, ACC's proposed levy hikes threaten to add another financial burden. It is time for a critical look at our accident compensation system. Read more
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) just released its Annual Report for 2024, providing an opportunity to examine how the central bank views its own performance. The Governor’s statement is revealing, praising a “Great team, best central bank” while ignoring the serious macroeconomic mismanagement by the current leadership. Read more