OPINION

What kinds of things matter for student achievement? Is it class size, school journals, the school building, or a flash new gym? Read more

Simon Cowan, at last weekend’s Liberty & Society conference, addressed the pressing issue of Australia’s ballooning federal expenditure and the huge economic and social impact this will have if spending isn’t curbed soon. The elephant in the room that Cowan, a research fellow at the Centre for Independent Studies, is referring to is Australia’s dwindling economic growth, an ageing population and the rapidly rising healthcare and pension costs associated with the demographic shift. Read more

The shifts in the political landscape with the anointment of David Cunliffe have sparked a flurry of ‘what if Labour and Greens get in?’ policy speculation recently, and unsurprisingly the electricity sector has been spotlight. Since it was first mooted earlier this year, the electricity industry and business sector have been at pains to call for a thorough economic analysis before policymakers dismantle the free market system currently used and move to a single buyer model. Read more

It is good to see housing high on the policy agenda. That is where it should be. Read more

For those who had hoped we might slowly leave the Great Recession behind, this week brought bad news on both sides of the Atlantic. In the US, the government shutdown after Republicans and Democrats failed to reach an agreement on the budget. Read more

It was both unsurprising but interesting to open the paper this week and see the proposed Otaki Expressway in the headlines again. Unsurprising because the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) is currently having its resource consent heard for the proposed road, but interesting because of the way the NZTA lawyers are pitching the project. Read more

It’s time we asked the fundamental question. Can we have strong local economies and vigorous communities when so much public decision-making is made by central government in Wellington? Read more

It is a new thing for New Zealand to have a chief science advisor to the Prime Minister. Sir Peter Gluckman’s laudable brief is "to promote discourse that will lead New Zealand to better apply evidence-based knowledge and research across all domains of public endeavour". Read more

The Productivity Commission’s stinging slap to the face of working New Zealanders reveals we spend more time at the grindstone but achieve less. By the numbers, we work about 15% longer than the OECD average but produce 20% less when measured on an output per hour basis. Read more

Following Germany’s federal election last Sunday, most international commentators concluded that Chancellor Angela Merkel has reached the zenith of her power. Her party won 41.5 per cent of the vote and missed a parliamentary majority by only five seats in a Bundestag of 630 MPs. Read more

Looking at government's bid to overhaul the country's health and safety laws, it's tempting to look at the matter and say any measure - no matter how radical - that makes the workplace less dangerous is a good thing. It's even easier when the particular legislative sea change is fronted by a tragedy. Read more

Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, announced his 19-person Cabinet on Monday, with just one female minister, Julie Bishop. Not that Australians would notice much. Read more

Tony Abbott’s recently announced Australian Cabinet is conspicuous for its lack of women, and apparently this is a big deal. With only one woman out of a cabinet of 19, even Afghanistan boasts more females in its cabinet. Read more

Tony Abbott’s recently announced Australian Cabinet is conspicuous for its lack of women, and apparently this is a big deal. With only one woman out of a cabinet of 19, even Afghanistan boasts more females in its cabinet. Read more

Newly elected Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, announced his 19-person Cabinet on Monday, with just one female minister, Julie Bishop. Not that Australians would notice much. Read more