Auckland City, Auckland house prices. Politically, that is the government's most immediate local government issue. Read more
While that pesky surplus is proving rather capricious, this year’s budget shows tentative progress towards fiscal objectives. The Initiative’s 2014 report Guarding the Public Purse, argued that greater productivity growth, competition and spending restraint were essential to achieving longer-term fiscal sustainability. Read more
There was much speculation that this would be the budget that would radically transform the way the government funds and delivers social services. In a speech made earlier this year, Finance Minister Bill English hinted at a new budget process: rolling out the ‘social investment approach’ to areas beyond welfare. Read more
The Fiscal Responsibility Act forces government to pay attention to its expenditures. But what about the cases where government instead compels you to do the spending on its behalf? Read more
At a time when Britain is considering whether to leave the EU, Greece still teeters on the brink of bankruptcy, and Brussels cannot find a response to the refugee crisis in the Mediterranean, many ordinary Europeans will question what European integration has ever done for them. For Europeans concerned about the value of the EU, one project has always been cited as exemplifying what is so good about it. Read more
Dr Oliver Hartwich of presents on the case for economic growth at the PortfolioConstruction Forum in Auckland on 19 May 2015. Read more
Charities play an important role in our society, delivering a range of social services to numerous communities and causes. Their good work is recognised by the government, which confers a range of privileges to them, such as an income tax exemption, and the state also provides a significant portion of the sector’s funding. Read more
Jason Krupp on discusses charities legislation on Radio Live. Read more
For public transit advocates wondering what form transport networks will take in a future increasingly concerned with urbanisation, congestion and energy efficiency, here is one probable answer: It will have four wheels, a small seat capacity and travel on the road. Yes, it is the car. Read more
Wellington (18 May 2015): Government needs to set clearer rules, provide greater transparency and remove the tax advantage enjoyed by for-profit arms of charity groups if it wants to promote the work of the charitable sector, according to The New Zealand Initiative. The public policy think tank’s latest report, Giving Charities a Helping Hand, analysed over a decade of regulatory change in the sector, and found that the current rules are stacked against smaller operators while allowing commercial arms of large charities to claim income tax exemptions with little oversight. Read more
The best case we can make for the Reserve Bank’s latest round of loan-to-value home mortgage regulations (LVRs) is not particularly compelling. Or, at least, it requires stretching our understanding of the bank’s prudential regulation mandate a bit farther than I’d like. Read more
One of the greatest advances of civilisation is also one of the least obvious: branded products. We take brands for granted because they are everywhere. Read more
A society without government regulation is not an unregulated society. It sounds paradoxical, but I am talking about self-regulation, or self-control, or that stuffy old Victorian concept, willpower. Read more
This week, The New Zealand Initiative released a report assessing social impact bonds in a New Zealand context. The report identifies both opportunities and challenges. Read more
There is no question that the British Conservatives’ election result is way better than any pollster had predicted. Achieving an absolute majority of the seats is a major feat for Prime Minister David Cameron – and one that probably not even Cameron himself would have thought possible. Read more