New Zealand's living standards have been slipping relative to the countries we compare ourselves with, and the gap is now measured in decades rather than years. That is a policy failure rather than an act of nature.
Productivity is the binding constraint. New Zealanders work long hours for comparatively little, because too little capital, too few good ideas and too much regulatory friction stand between effort and reward. No government can legislate productivity growth. Every government can stop obstructing it.
The Initiative's economic research examines the settings that decide whether investment happens here or somewhere else. We look at fiscal discipline and the quality of public spending, at a monetary framework that concentrates on price stability and leaves the rest alone, at a tax system that does not punish saving and investment and at openness to foreign capital and foreign markets.
Prosperity is not a matter of trying harder. It is a matter of getting the incentives right.
Dr Wilkinson and the Initiative’s Executive Director Dr Oliver Hartwich will discuss the report in a webinar at 2 pm on Tuesday 3 November. Register here. Read more
To the leaders of New Zealand’s political parties New Zealand needs investment from both here and overseas to build businesses and create jobs. Investors need confidence that the law will protect what they own and the agreements they make. Read more
1. INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY 1.1 This submission on the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s Keeping Cash Local consultation is made by The New Zealand Initiative (the Initiative), a Wellington-based think tank supported primarily by major New Zealand businesses. Read more
Two weeks ago, New Zealand by Numbers asked whether New Zealand was improving. Our latest report asks a harder question: is it keeping up? Read more
Is New Zealand a country in decline or a quiet success story? A new report from The New Zealand Initiative argues it is neither. Read more
Wellington (Tuesday, 3 November 2026) - New Zealand heads into the election with two big problems barely mentioned on the campaign trail: rising government debt and stalling productivity. A new report from The New Zealand Initiative, NZ Unbound: Freeing up growth and fixing the books, says the answer starts with getting value for money. Read more
Three polls landed this week, with National under 30 per cent on the party vote while holding 44 electorate seats, and Opportunity sitting either side of the threshold depending on which poll you read. The question is whether National’s voters have gone tactical or left the party altogether. Read more
Donald Trump’s second term has given Europe one fight after another. Tariffs, Greenland, Ukraine and Iran have all had their turn. Read more
Might the plunge in the value of the New Zealand dollar in the last five weeks make you poorer? The reason for asking is that, on 29 September, a New Zealand dollar bought 5.1% fewer US dollars than on 24 August, 3.1% fewer Australian dollars and 4.6% fewer units of the Reserve Bank’s basket of currencies. Read more
When law firms advise foreign clients on investing in New Zealand, they usually include some version of the same paragraph. It describes the country as a stable democracy with independent courts, secure property rights and predictable politics, and for decades nobody had to think twice before writing it. Read more