The general question that I have been asked to address is this: how to think about telecommunications regulation. My comparative advantage is not in particular knowledge of the ongoing New Zealand dispute on how heavy- or light-handed telecommunications regulation ought to be, although I have some weak instincts on that subject that I will share with you in due course. Read more
The NZBR, in its research, is attempting to take the broadest possible view of the concept of a regulatory constitution. We have analysed many attempts at regulatory reform within countries belonging to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), starting with the initiatives of various US presidents in the early 1970s. Read more
How can we decide what the goals of public policy ought to be? Should equality or some other form of equity be a social goal? Read more
The publication of this paper comes at an important time for the future of the legal profession in New Zealand. Regulation that is specific to the legal profession has been the subject of increasing debate in recent years. Read more
The 1989 reform of local government increased its efficiency and improved the quality and amount of information available to ratepayers. The rate of improvement within the local government sector has, however, slowed in the recent past. Read more
The market is from both a practical and theoretical point of view central to an understanding of the topic of corporate, or as is said in New Zealand, company control. The history of the field has witnessed many twists and turns. Read more
I can think of two possible approaches to the general question of how to restore the sanctity of property and contract - a systematic exposition from first principles or a more autobiographical account. On this occasion, I will begin with some personal reflections. Read more
I begin this talk with a now standard disclaimer: I know comparatively little about the New Zealand political setting, so I shall step back from the detail of specific institutions to consider the general question of how best to design voting systems. The basic principles can then be applied to various issues concerning New Zealand's mixed member proportional (MMP) electoral system. The first point is a note of caution: voting systems within modern democratic politics are highly imperfect arrangements, even when operating at their best. Read more
The first thing I should say is that the wrong Epstein is speaking to you today. The proper Epstein is my wife who works at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools and who has been involved in most phases of school administration. Read more
Recently a newspaper column by former Metro editor Warwick Roger made me sit up and think. It was a kindly reflection on the late Bruce Jesson, a fellow journalist and non-stop critic of most of New Zealand's economic changes in the past 15 years. Read more
The power of ideas should never be underestimated. Good or bad ideas will usually influence public policy – if not in the short run then at least over the long run. Read more
Being ignorant of New Zealand's local circumstances, I am uncertain what I can offer to another country on topics such as the law and economics of resource management. What I hope to bring is a general theory that applies independently of local concerns. Read more
My task today is to consider reforms for the government's regulation of schooling. By way of introduction, let me refer briefly to a talk I gave during my previous visit to New Zealand, in December 1995, entitled 'The Role of the Government in Education'. Read more
The kind introductory remarks of Mr Judd provide a valuable framework for my topic. And his invocation of Frederic Bastiat offers an instructive, if unintended, way to frame this lecture. Read more
It was only with some trepidation that I accepted your invitation to speak about the Treaty of Waitangi and the rights of indigenous people, a most controversial subject in New Zealand. At one level, the debates here replicate those that are occurring elsewhere in the world. Read more