Greece. Crete. Read more
In this podcast episode, retired Major General John Howard joins Oliver live in a webinar to discuss his new research note "Worth Defending" and why New Zealand needs a stronger, combat-capable Defence Force. Howard, who served forty years and retired only last year, describes what decades of declining capability looked like from the inside, explains why he thinks the $9 billion of new defence money is not enough, and sets out what it would take to rebuild across two or three successive governments. Read more
New Zealand's prosperity depends on open sea lanes and a stable Pacific. The country cannot secure either without a defence force able to contribute alongside its partners. Read more
Wellington (Wednesday, 16 September 2026) – New Zealand's prosperity depends on open sea lanes and a stable Pacific, and a new report from The New Zealand Initiative argues the country cannot secure either without a defence force able to contribute alongside its partners. In Worth Defending: Freedom, prosperity and the case for a stronger New Zealand Defence Force, Major General (Retired) John G Howard, MNZM, a Senior Fellow of the Initiative and the inaugural Chief of Defence Intelligence, argues that a credible, combat-capable Defence Force is not discretionary spending but the foundation on which the country's security, sovereignty and economic prosperity rest. Read more
Our Chief Economist Eric Crampton joined philosopher Peter Boghossian, in a conversation produced with the Free Speech Union, to discuss immigration policy, housing affordability, and public health taxes. Eric argued New Zealand's points-based immigration system works precisely because it pairs openness with a genuine willingness to deport those who break the rules, pointed to zoning reform as the key driver behind Auckland's improved housing affordability, and made the case against "sin taxes" as a tool for shaping health behaviour. Read more
Why does New Zealand need a defence force at all when no one is going to attack us? In this New Zealand Initiative webinar, retired Major General John Howard launches his research note Worth Defending, which argues that a credible, combat-capable Defence Force is not discretionary spending but the foundation on which the country's security, sovereignty and economic prosperity rest. Read more
National has announced it would split Foodstuffs into separate Pak'nSave and New World chains, in the name of more competition. Oliver and Damien ask whether breaking up a family-owned cooperative is likely to persuade an Aldi or a Lidl to come here, or convince them to stay away for good. Read more
Our Chief Economist Eric Crampton joined Sean Plunket on The Platform to unpack New Zealand First's policy to bar non-citizens from receiving superannuation. Eric pushed back on the claim that New Zealand is an outlier internationally, noting that superannuation-style pensions in Canada, the UK, and across much of Europe are typically based on residency rather than citizenship, much like New Zealand's own system, which already requires 10 to 20 years of residence depending on birth year. Read more
Over the past fortnight, both ACT and New Zealand First announced policies targeted at those who live in New Zealand as permanent residents rather than as citizens. In both cases, the announcements aimed to push permanent residents to take up citizenship, to accept a sharply degraded experience living here, or to leave. Read more
Dr Oliver Hartwich joined Michael Laws on The Platform to discuss his essay "An Auction of Stolen Goods," arguing that election campaigns are essentially voters being bribed with their own tax dollars. Oliver noted this pattern holds regardless of who's in power, pointing out that three years after voters decisively rejected the last Labour government, the current election is on a knife's edge. Read more
There was a line that made the rounds when Trump first campaigned to be President: his promises should be taken seriously but not literally. Last week, New Zealand First promised that, from 2029, only citizens would be able to collect superannuation. Read more
The four months before an election aren’t great for those who care about good policy. Politicians’ competence at other times is questionable. Read more
“Every election is a sort of advance auction sale of stolen goods,” H.L. Mencken wrote in 1936. Read more
The Greens want to buy 120 supermarkets and a couple of distribution centres for $2.8 billion, which one analysis puts at a saving of $68 a household a year. Oliver and Damien ask what nationalisation would actually deliver, and why New Zealand First is proposing something similar for the BNZ. Read more
This week, the results of the ninth round of the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) were released. PISA enables countries to track their educational performance over time. Read more
