Ever since HSBC’s Paul Bloxham first called New Zealand a “rock star economy” back in 2014, I have been wondering what he had meant. It was not entirely clear, even back then when the economy was doing a lot better. Read more
Wellington (Thursday, 22 August 2024) - The New Zealand Initiative welcomes the government's newly released Regional Deals Strategic Framework, seeing it as a positive step towards empowering local communities and fostering economic growth. Nick Clark, Senior Fellow at The New Zealand Initiative, says the framework aligns with many of the recommendations the think tank has been advocating for years. Read more
Dr James Kierstead appears on The Platform to talk to Sean Plunket about his latest report on Academic Freedom. Read Dr James Kierstead's report, Unpopular Opinions: Academic Freedom in New Zealand, here. Read more
New Zealand’s councils want more of a say over local matters. Informed by local knowledge, they believe they can make better choices for their people than the central government in Wellington. Read more
Dr James Kierstead discusses his new report Unpopular Opinions: Academic Freedom in New Zealand with Prof Grant Schofield. Dr Oliver Hartwich moderates this discussion. Read more
Wellington (Wednesday, 21 August 2024) - The New Zealand Initiative has released a new research report examining the state of academic freedom at our universities. The report, entitled Unpopular Opinions: Academic Freedom in New Zealand, provides a detailed and thoroughly documented examination of the state of academic freedom at our universities, together with an analysis of the main threats to academic freedom in this country at present. Read more
This research report provides a detailed and thoroughly documented examination of the state of academic freedom at our universities, together with an analysis of the main threats to academic freedom in this country at present. “We’ve collected 72 testimonies from academics, analysed 5 surveys of academics and students, and written up detailed reports on 21 incidents involving academic freedom that have occurred over the past decade in this country,” explained Dr James Kierstead, Research Fellow at the Initiative and author of the report. Read more
German state elections rarely warrant a column in New Zealand. But when an election threatens to end Germany’s post-war political order, an exception is justified. Read more
Dr Oliver Hartwich appeared on The Platform to talk to Sean Plunket about the recent cut to New Zealand's Official Cash Rate (OCR) by the Reserve Bank. Oliver explains that while the decision was economically justified given the country's economic struggles, he criticises the Reserve Bank's communication, arguing they should have been more transparent about changing their previous stance. Read more
At our Health Innovators' Summit, Prof Lester Levy opened the event with a keynote address. Watch his presentation below. Read more
This week the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) lowered the Official Cash Rate (OCR) from 5.50% to 5.25%. Many market economists predicted this change. Read more
Old fashioned crimes, like car theft and burglary, have certain characteristics that can be annoying for the police. For one thing, laws have to be passed to define them. Read more
Te Whatu Ora Commissioner Lester Levy opened our second Health Innovators’ Summit with a sobering stocktake. Patients wait too long for essential services. Read more
In this episode, Eric Crampton and Sarah Hogan, Deputy Chief Executive at NZIER, discuss a new report estimating the social costs of alcohol in New Zealand at $9 billion, with a focus on how such figures are calculated and used in policymaking. They explore the challenges of accurately attributing costs to alcohol, debate the effectiveness of targeted interventions versus broad policies, and emphasize the importance of addressing first-order problems like fetal alcohol spectrum disorder while ensuring cost-effective approaches to reducing alcohol-related harms. Related links: Eric’s summary of the OIAs on the Stage One review of the Alcohol Levy The OIA correspondence for the Stage One review OIA for early drafts of the NZIER alcohol cost study, request of Dylan Firth, Brewers Association To listen to our latest podcasts, please subscribe to The New Zealand Initiative podcast on iTunes, Spotify or The Podcast App. Read more
In recent weeks, media reports have highlighted two seemingly unrelated issues: a severe shortage of General Practitioners (GPs) and the closure of businesses due to soaring electricity prices. While these issues may appear to be distinct, they share a root cause. Read more