Good infrastructure is essential for modern life. Just think about your day. Read more
Nights regular and chief economist with The New Zealand Initiative, Eric Crampton, talks to Mark about the Wellington rates review, and some recent results in urban economics. Read more
Last week marked a significant milestone in Europe’s ongoing struggles to navigate the complex issue of migration. After years of fraught discussions, the European Union (EU) finally reached a consensus on a new refugee policy. Read more
Questions are being raised over whether the Green Party's proposed tax overhaul is needed. It's pledging to lift the top tax rate to 45%, corporate taxes to 33%, and slash taxes for earners below $120,000. Read more
Did we just witness a third transformative Government in New Zealand’s history? Would it be right to compare the administration of former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to the likes of Savage and Lange who’s policies altered the course of New Zealand? Read more
Wellington has a lot of problems. No one thing will fix all of them. But the current review of council ratings policy could fix an important problem and provide an example for other urban councils. Read more
It may be too early to read too much into the Government's higher than expected deficit. Latest Treasury figures show the Government has recorded a $7 billion deficit for the ten months to April. Read more
Taking an unusual step, Foodstuffs North Island addressed the escalating retail crime rate in the country in a media release this week. The retailer reported an increase of 38% in retail crime incidents between February and April 2023 compared to the same period last year. Read more
The Budget’s flagship announcement presented an enticing proposal: 20 hours of early childhood education (ECE) per week for children aged two and over, funded entirely by taxpayers, due to commence in March 2024. Nonetheless, there appears to be a hidden cost. Read more
Businesses typically avoid taking a stance on contentious political matters, particularly during election campaigns, and that is what makes this week’s media release from Foodstuffs North Island quite remarkable. In this week’s podcast, Oliver Hartwich is joined by Chris Quin, CEO of Foodstuffs North Island, to delve into the pressing issue of escalating retail crime and lawlessness in New Zealand. Read more
Last year, Kiri Allan was forced to withdraw the government’s latest ‘hate speech’ proposals, only a year or so after Kris Faafoi was forced to shelve similar plans. We have no doubt that you were as dismayed as we were by these developments (or lack of developments). Read more
New Zealand’s universities are in crisis. Their most immediate problem is financial. Read more
Businesses typically avoid taking a stance on contentious political matters, particularly during election campaigns. That makes this week’s media release from New Zealand’s Foodstuffs North Island quite remarkable. Read more
State education has been in a void in New Zealand for a number of years. After spending some time as a world leader, the education field has been ploughed with incompetence. Read more
In my last column, I used a puzzling proverb to show that we can’t simultaneously have low inflation and cheap money. Today, I use the equally puzzling comment made by Adrian Orr in the OCR announcement that the government is ‘more of a friend than foe’ to explore the relationship between our government and the Reserve Bank. Read more
