Thank goodness New Zealand has an Auditor-General who takes his official responsibilities seriously. Last week, he released a damning assessment of recent ministerial processes for making funding decisions on two major infrastructure investment programmes. Read more
Wellington (Wednesday, 20 December 2023) - “Treasury’s updated fiscal and economic forecasts released today confirm that this government faces serious fiscal challenges”, said Dr Bryce Wilkinson, Senior Fellow at the New Zealand Initiative. “The Minister of Finance’s “mini-budget” statement shows she fully ‘gets it’.” “Taxpayers and the recipients of government spending cannot all expect to avoid the burden of those challenges”. Read more
Minister of Education Hon Erica Stanford talks about Dr Michael Johnston and the newly formed Ministerial Advisory Group to review education curriculum and the common practice model during Question Time in Parliament. Watch below. Read more
Wellington (Tuesday, 19 December 2023) – The New Zealand Initiative proudly announces the appointment of its Senior Fellow, Dr Michael Johnston, as the Chair of the Government’s newly established Ministerial Advisory Group to review the primary school English, maths and statistics curricula in New Zealand. Dr Johnston is a cognitive psychologist with an extensive background in the education sector. Read more
As 2023 draws to a close, we reflect on a transformative year for New Zealand’s political scene. The election ended Labour’s six-year reign and ushered in a new three-party coalition government under Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. Read more
In our final episode of the year, Oliver and Michael discuss how things are sitting now in NZ with a new government, the challenges they're facing, some of the early decisions they've made and what the prospects are for the new year. To listen to our latest podcasts, please subscribe to The New Zealand Initiative podcast on iTunes, Spotify or The Podcast App. Read more
Mike Hosking talks to Dr Oliver Hartwich about the recent fall in GDP, as the economy shrank 0.3 per cent compared to the June 2023 quarter. Listen below. Read more
Mike Hosking talks about Roger Partridge's latest column in NZ Herald "Why Fair Pay Agreements were never going to work" on Newstalk ZB. Listen below. Read more
The demise of the last Government’s Fair Pay Agreement legislation is a cautionary tale for policymakers. Death and taxes are sometimes called the only certainties. Read more
Dr Michael Johnston talks to Tim Dower on Newstalk ZB's Early Edition about the Government delaying plan to make online numeracy and literacy tests a prerequisite for NCEA from 2026. Listen below. Read more
As 2023 draws to an end, it is time for a stocktake on the most significant geopolitical issue of the past couple of years: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. At first, this unprovoked attack seemed to trigger a revival of Western unity and determination. Read more
On 5 December 1933, ninety years ago this week, America ended alcohol prohibition. Fourteen years of prohibition had reduced drinking, but at a terrible cost. Read more
The country’s education establishment has come out swinging. ‘Destructive,’ ‘weird,’ and ‘radical,’ are how the critics have described the Christopher Luxon-led Coalition Government’s education reform agenda. Read more
Peter Shirtcliffe, long-time Chairman of Telecom and laureate of the New Zealand Business Hall of Fame, joins Oliver on the podcast. Telecom (now known as Spark) was NZ's largest listed company from 1990 to 1999. Read more
Two decades ago, a new term – ‘PISA shock’ – entered the German lexicon. The Germans had prided themselves on a world-class education system. Read more