Taxpayers commonly work hard to earn the money that governments take in taxes. Knowing the effort sacrificed they naturally want governments to spend that money wisely and well. Read more
Wellington (Tuesday, 30 August 2022) – Fiction over fact is the basis for the Ministry of Health’s (MOH) new policies, research by think tank The New Zealand Initiative reveals. The fact that neither the Government nor the MOH could produce objective data to support their claims that systemic racism is significantly to blame for poor Māori health outcomes is the most alarming revelation in the Initiative’s new report, Every life is worth the same – The case for equal treatment. Read more
Oliver Hartwich joins Chris Trotter and Damien Grant on The Working Groups Weekly Political Podcast hosted by Martyn Bradbury. They discuss a range of issues including: Issue 1 – State Services vs Me and the gagging of the Children’s Commissioner Issue 2 – Powell shoves US Economy down Jackson Hole – what does Adrian Orr do? Read more
Jonathan Ayling is the chief executive of the Free Speech Union. We talked to him about the state of free speech in New Zealand; and whether or not it's under threat. Read more
Last month, Ireland taught the All Blacks a thing or two about rugby. Yet New Zealand has even more to learn from the Irish about productivity and prosperity. Read more
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr coined this well-known aphorism in his 1848 novel Les Guêpes (The Wasps). Read more
New research has revealed that soaring rents in New Zealand is now seeing cash strapped students racking up thousands of dollars on credit cards. As well as an inquiry into student wellbeing recently recommended fees free courses and a universal student allowance. Read more
We can learn a lot from Australia. Routinely ranked among the best places in the world to call home, the lucky country has a climate to die for, a robust economy, and a culture that celebrates winning. Read more
Oliver Hartwich is joined by Retail NZ CEO, Greg Harford, to discuss the pressures retailers are facing in the current economic climate - crime, inflation, fair pay agreements, increasing costs of doing business, labour shortages, and Covid. To listen to our latest podcasts, please subscribe to The New Zealand Initiative podcast on iTunes, Spotify or The Podcast App. Read more
The Royal Society of New Zealand exists, so its website proclaims, to further and promote “the pursuit of knowledge”. But is knowledge now taking a back seat to politics? Read more
Have you heard of Leonardo's masterpiece, The Muppets' Last Supper? Or Kandinsky's colourful Swirling Music Notes? Read more
This submission on the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products (Smoked Tobacco) Amendment Bill is made by the New Zealand Initiative and the Reason Foundation, a non-profit U.S.-based think-tank. The Reason Foundation’s nonpartisan public policy research promotes choice, competition, and a dynamic market economy as the foundation for human dignity and progress. Read more
During the European sovereign debt crisis, I contributed a regular column to the Australian magazine Business Spectator. One week, I noticed a tiny bit of hope, which I wanted to write about. Read more
A dinner game Gather round, children. I have a sad fable to tell. Read more
Everyone knows the expression, ‘you have to be cruel to be kind’. A suggestion to shorten the school holidays might well be perceived as cruel. Read more