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Since the publication of The Spirit Level in 2009, and its ‘devastating critique’, The Spirit Level Delusion, in 2010, debates in the media and among politicians have been gripped by wealth inequality fever. The latest instalment is French economist Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-First Century – a book which is at the centre of its own maelstrom over the accuracy of its analysis. Read more

What is democracy? Well, usually democracy is when the people vote in an election and the winner then happens to form a government. Read more

If markets are anything to go by, last weekend’s elections to the European Parliament delivered a good outcome, promising stability and predictability for the continent. Across Europe, stock indices soared on Monday: up 3.4 per cent in Italy, up 2 percent in Greece. Read more

If a week is a long time in politics, it is an age in business, especially for those sectors of the economy exposed to political volatility. Just ask the listed electricity companies, whose share prices are still wearing the effects of the single buyer policy the Labour and Green parties launched one year ago. Read more

Every corner you turn, there is another nature-loving, compost-making, bike-riding, community-befriending greenie - you know the type - they knit their own yoghurts. Perhaps this is because I live in New Zealand's oldest hippie suburb, Aro Valley in Wellington, but it seems the resurgence of green-thinking is not limited to this one neighbourhood. Read more

20th century German-language novelist, Franz Kafka, said that “every revolution evaporates and leaves behind only the slime of a new bureaucracy.” Clearly, the man was not a fan of bureaucracies. In fact, “Kafkaesque” is how we now describe the worst aspects of bureaucracy. Read more

In a couple of weeks’ time, over 413 million European voters in 28 countries will be asked to vote for the European Parliament. Hundreds of parties, divided by political orientation and nationality, are competing for the 751 seats. Read more

MYTH 1: Foreign investment means loss of control Parliament remains the supreme law-making body, inwards foreign investment must comply with New Zealand laws, and foreigners don't get to vote. Land use and business activity is extensively regulated in New Zealand, for overseas and local investors alike. Read more

This week, The New Zealand Initiative releases its third and final report in the foreign direct investment (FDI) series, Open for Business: Removing the barriers to foreign investment. The report focuses on New Zealand's policies towards inwards overseas investment, the centrepiece of which is the Overseas Investment Act 2005 (OIA). Read more

Openness to foreign trade and capital is fundamental to New Zealand's prosperity. If we get both aspects right, New Zealanders can enjoy the best things the world can offer and great job prospects – without emigrating. Read more