Like many young Kiwis, I was surprised to learn during the election campaign that Chris Hipkins and Christopher Luxon both bought their first homes at the tender age of 24. As someone who has recently written on the history of housing in New Zealand, I should not have been so surprised. Read more
When a new pharmaceutical is so successful that it blows out the national income accounts, it’s probably safe to call it a wonderdrug. Semaglutide, marketed as Ozempic when treating Type II diabetes and as Wegovy for weight loss, turned a half-year 0.3% decline in Danish GDP into a 1.7% year-on-year increase. Read more
New Zealand will soon have a new government following the final 2023 election results. It will comprise three parties: National, ACT, and New Zealand First. Read more
Now that the special votes have been counted, it is time to get down to the nitty-gritty of forming a government. The likely coalition partners National, ACT and New Zealand First will have to navigate political potholes and the odd speedbump if they are to form an effective relationship. Read more
The election is now firmly behind us, and the shape of the Sixth National Government of New Zealand will soon emerge. Likely coalition partners National and ACT have staunchly advocated for deregulation in their election campaigns. Read more
The Wellington City Council is juggling a few financial priorities at the moment. The top priority is to clear as many curb-side parking places as possible, to make way for bike lanes. Read more
Last year, respect for the Commerce Commission sank to a new low. The New Zealand Initiative’s 2022 report, Reassessing the Regulators: The Good, the Bad and the Commerce Commission, revealed the Commission had lost the respect of the businesses it is tasked with regulating. Read more
New Zealand is waiting – for better weather, the next Rugby World Cup, and the formation of our new Government. Not necessarily in that order, but with similar anticipation. Read more
It is not just New Zealanders waiting for a new government to be formed following parliamentary elections. Poland also recently held an election – and like New Zealand, a change of government is expected. Read more
“There is no alternative” is a powerful framing if you want your alternative to prevail – even more so when regulations make it too easy for other options to be far too hard. Wellington’s Council got a dose of it over the past week. Read more
In a week from now, when the special votes have finally been counted, coalition negotiations will begin in earnest. National, ACT and, probably, New Zealand First will get into horse-trading over policy and Ministerial posts. Read more
Hey, you. Yeah, you. Read more
Common advice to public speakers is to start with a joke. So perhaps outgoing Prime Minister Chris Hipkins was only joking when he kept saying, “We are winning the battle against inflation”. Read more
New Zealand’s teachers are operating under a lot of pressure. Our schools face an acute shortage of teaching staff, especially in specialist areas like secondary mathematics and science. Read more
New Zealand politics is in limbo right now. Special votes are being counted. Read more