The most remarkable feature of the global financial crisis is its sheer duration. For five years now, developed economies have been in trouble – much longer than ‘ordinary’ recessions usually last. Read more
Watch the Victoria University of Wellington and University of Canterbury battle it out with the moot: Issue of the minimum wage and whether it makes for a fair start in the workforce. Read more
Few things in politics look more certain than a change of government after the next Australian election in 2013. The Gillard Labor government is polling abysmally and plagued by constant leadership quarrels. Read more
The National Party has announced it will reduce the number of long-term beneficiaries by 30 per cent in five years. Ambitious stuff, but notably absent from the government’s Better Public Services programme is a commitment to ignore industry requests for state lifelines that may arise. Read more
As the Olympics begin to wind up, and countries reflect on their performance, the inevitable calls for reviewing funding arrangements are beginning to pour in. So far, these calls in New Zealand have been muted, mainly because we have done well – with the added bonus of winning more gold medals than Australia for much of the games. Read more
Of all the reasons why Europe’s monetary crisis keeps dragging on, the lack of a common language is not the most obvious one. Why should it matter when the predominant language of finance, politics and diplomacy is English? Read more
The New Zealand Initiative with the support of the Friedlander Foundation is hosting a debating series titled The Next Generation Debates: Fresh Perspectives on the Big Social Issues. Over the next two weeks the top two debaters from each of Auckland, Victoria, Canterbury and Otago universities will be going head to head over moots based around topical social issues. Read more
The Western world since the Enlightenment has been shaped by the inviolability of rule of law, a commitment to scientific enquiry, and an adherence to democratic process. But at the root of all of these values lies an openness to ideas and a willingness to discuss them. Read more
Thirty years ago, it was an everyday experience to see New Zealanders smoke in meetings, restaurants and even on public transport. Today, such activities are socially unacceptable and often outright illegal. Read more
And did the Countenance Divine Shine forth upon our clouded hills? And was Jerusalem builded here Among these dark Satanic mills? Read more
While the rest of Europe was still debating fiscal solutions to the debt crisis, Mario Draghi reminded us that the answer may well be monetary. By signalling the possibility of strong ECB intervention in bond markets, the ECB president did not only calm the markets temporarily; he also revealed where the EU is heading. Read more
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Debates about the letter of the recovery – “V”, “U”, “W”, “L”– assume the inevitable return to robust economic growth. Economic growth has become the universal solution for all political and economic problems, from reducing poverty to now solving the problems of over-indebted individuals, businesses and nations. Read more
With the London Olympics about to start, it is time to reveal the medal tally. China will win 102 medals (gold, silver and bronze), followed closely by the United States (100), Russia (71), and the United Kingdom (71). Read more
The Government has a website (New Zealand Now) that markets New Zealand to the world as “a great place to live, invest and do business”. A great many New Zealanders, including the strongest opponents of foreign investment, would probably agree. Read more
