With votes on the Scottish independence referendum still being counted, it is worthwhile pondering what the nation state will look like if the Scots choose to secede from the union. There are fundamental questions that will need to be answered, such as how public debt, social services, and gas field revenues will be divided. Read more
There is something deeply rewarding about Magic Eye puzzles, where if you stare at the image for long enough, and with the right kind of focus, you can discover the clearer picture. Public policy is not like that. Read more
The latest edition of the Global Competitiveness Report reveals that New Zealand, at 17th place, has achieved its best ranking since 2004, and an improvement on its 2013 rank by one place. The report, released annually by the World Economic Forum, provides an overview of the competitiveness of 144 countries. Read more
Election time is a time of tribes. Political beliefs are tied up with personal and group identity, and people will fight passionately to defend the ideas of their tribe. Read more
A week just spent in the glittering, throbbing city-state metropolis that is Hong Kong, is a reminder that there is a lot more to this place than its stunning night-time skyline. Rolls Royce cars and Ferraris adorn its streets, perhaps to an uncomfortable degree from an egalitarian Kiwi perspective, yet labour-intensive, bespoke suits are still much cheaper than in New Zealand. Read more
The elections in the state of Saxony a couple of weeks ago mark a historic shift in Germany’s political landscape. The liberal, business-friendly Free Democrat Party got kicked out of parliament, having lost two thirds of their previous voters and being left with only 3.8 percent of the vote. Read more
Should teachers be paid on their students’ NCEA achievement or National Standards results? Should they be let go if they can’t get their results up to scratch? Read more
New Zealand is far from the only country in the world facing a housing affordability crisis, according to the latest international report. According to the International Monetary Fund’s Global Housing Watch, surging property prices are a global epidemic, with GDP-weighted house prices having risen steadily for seven quarters in a row. Read more
In last week’s Insights, Oliver Hartwich talked about the dismal science but did not note the origins of the term. Economics came to be known as the dismal science because, during the mid-1800s, they worked with the Christian philanthropists of Exeter Hall to call for an end to British accommodation of foreign slavery. Read more
New Zealand has to wait another three weeks for the result of its elections, in another MMP country they went to the polls last Sunday. In the German state of Saxony, voters delivered a fractured parliament in which none of the traditional coalitions of the right or the left had a clear and robust majority. Read more
Our regular readers will not be surprised that we believe the high cost of housing is a major challenge facing New Zealanders. As a crucial election issue, we have eagerly awaited each major party’s housing announcements, hoping they will pave the way for restoring housing affordability. Read more
With housing back in the pre-election spotlight, the Green Party this week launched their policy package, targeted at an often overlooked segment of the voter spectrum – renters. The problem, as the party sees it, is that a significant proportion of rental stock is in poor condition, and security of tenure for renters is weak, giving landlords disproportionate power in the contractual arrangement. Read more
Allegedly economics is the ‘dismal science’. Indeed, if you believe the wife of one of the economists in our team, you should avoid the company of economists like the plague. Read more
It is an utterly ironic situation for Europe. Every bit of bad news for its economies is good news for asset markets. Read more
We live in a time of immediate gratification, and at election time, political parties love to pander to what we want, right now. A recent 3 News Reid Research poll asked voters what they prefer for education. Read more