Erica Stanford has had a lot on her plate in her first year as a Minister. In her education portfolio, she has set a cracking pace, with work well underway on a knowledge-rich curriculum for primary and secondary schooling. Read more
This episode features Michael, with Oliver, responding to and critiquing statements made by Prof Peter O'Connor on RNZ about education policy. Michael systematically disagrees with O'Connor's views on the government's proposed education reforms, arguing that O'Connor misrepresents the reforms and presents false dichotomies between knowledge acquisition and creativity in education To listen to our latest podcasts, please subscribe to The New Zealand Initiative podcast on iTunes, Spotify or The Podcast App. Read more
Last week I received my rates invoice from Christchurch City Council. To my dismay, I learnt that my rates for the city council and regional council combined have increased by 11%. Read more
Dr Eric Crampton sat down with Mark Leishman, Stephen Franks and Verity Johnson on RNZ's show The Panel. Eric discusses the results of a major three-year trial of Universal Basic Income (UBI) in the United States, exploring its effects on work, health, and well-being, while considering the broader implications and challenges of implementing such a system on a national scale. Read more
Dr Oliver Hartwich was interviewed by Sean Plunket on The Platform about tax cuts coming into play. Watch below. Read more
New Zealand’s government sacked the entire board of Health New Zealand (Te Whatu Ora) last week, replacing it with a sole commissioner. The move marked more than just another shake-up in the country’s beleaguered health system. Read more
In 1968, ecologist Garrett Hardin argued that the “Tragedy of the Commons” is commonplace. If you wanted to deliberately engineer a commons problem, the management of the Conservation Estate would make for a pretty decent guidebook. Read more
It’s hard not to marvel at Silicon Valley’s technological innovations. But I’m dumbfounded by the social science experiment they’ve been working on. Read more
The record net migration loss of 60,100 New Zealand citizens in the year to May 2024 is an orange warning light for New Zealand. But fears that it represents a worrying brain drain are statistically premature. Read more
New Zealand’s most recent Public Services Commissioner announced his retirement in September 2023. He retired in February 2024. Read more
In this episode, Michael talks to Nick Gibb, former UK Minister for Schools, about education reforms implemented in England over the past decade. The conversation covers various aspects of these reforms, including the introduction of systematic synthetic phonics for reading instruction, changes to the mathematics curriculum, teacher training improvements, and the challenges faced in implementing evidence-based approaches in education. Read more
Health New Zealand has been quite economical lately. I don’t mean ‘economical’ in the fiscal sense, of course. Read more
Dr Bryce Wilkinson talked to Sean Plunket on The Platform about New Zealand's healthcare system overhaul, including the appointment of a new health commissioner and the challenges of restructuring after problematic reforms. They potential solutions, such as decentralising decision-making, to address issues like overspending and improve healthcare delivery. Watch below. Read more
1.1 This submission on the “Consultation on the Scope of the Treasury's Long-term Insights Briefing” is made by The New Zealand Initiative (the Initiative), a Wellington-based think tank supported primarily by major New Zealand businesses. In combination, our members employ more than 150,000 people. Read more
In a dramatic move this week, the government replaced the board of Health New Zealand (Te Whatu Ora) with a commissioner. Dramatic but not much of a surprise. Read more