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New Zealanders once took pride in being a resilient “do-it-yourself” (DIY) people. Working city fathers, like mine, would spend much of their weekends working on their houses, gardens, fruit trees or sheds. Read more

Turn on the news and you will hear endless references to the Crown: “Crown obligations,” “Crown land,” “Crown Treaty settlements.” Politicians make decisions “on behalf of the Crown.” Courts issue rulings about what “the Crown” must do. Yet ask Kiwis what this “Crown” actually is, and many will give blank stares. Read more

For the first time since the Second World War, New Zealand is being asked to make major economic decisions under direct threat from an ally. New Zealand is negotiating a minerals deal with the United States. Read more

At the World Economic Forum last month, Mark Carney delivered a speech that should make every middle power pay attention. The former central banker, now Canada’s Prime Minister, argued that the rules-based international order is fading. Read more

Think for a moment about how some pharmacy services are funded. Or rather, not really funded. Read more

Right now, Auckland Council’s zoning allows people to build about a million shops selling tasty pies. Tomorrow, someone could buy or lease a commercially-zoned site near you and turn it into a shop selling pies. Read more

Imagine Parliament passes a Schools Act “to promote the establishment of schools for the benefit of New Zealand.” Parliament is careful. It specifies exactly what the Minister must consider before approving a new school: the operator’s financial capability, site safety, compliance history, and consultation with local iwi. Read more