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Wellington, 9 April - A new report Quantifying the wellbeing costs of Covid-19 by the New Zealand Initiative shows how an economic hit of about 6.1% of GDP would be justified if it meant saving 33,600 lives during the Covid-19 pandemic. The figures, compiled by research fellow Dr Bryce Wilkinson, were generated by updating a Ministry of Health model from 2017 and plugging in the available data on Covid-19. Read more

Wellington, 8 April - Singapore has set a high standard for dealing with Covid-19 and despite its decision to enter a lockdown this week, New Zealand can learn a lot from the country, according to a new report Lessons from abroad: Singapore’s Covid-19 containment model from the New Zealand Initiative. Although Singapore has enacted a “circuit breaker” lockdown to defend against some new sources of coronavirus, it could make this choice due to its earlier efforts to identify, control and contain the pandemic threatening its territory. Read more

Wellington, 7 April - The Government’s current wage subsidy scheme may insufficiently protect Kiwis from the worst effects of the Covid-19 crisis, according to a new report from the New Zealand Initiative. Comparing New Zealand with Australia and Canada, the report Relief measures: comparing Covid-19 wage subsidy schemes by Dr David Law shows significant differences between the three in the construction of wage subsidy schemes. Read more

Following the release of his report Short-time work to maintain employment, David Law discusses the benefits of short-time work with Kerre McIver on Newstalk ZB.

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Our chief editor Nathan Smith is joined by chief economist Dr Eric Crampton and senior fellow Dr Bryce Wilkinson. In this week’s podcast, they discuss whether the Government’s Covid-19 cost-benefit analysis and subsequent lockdown is economically sound. Read more

Wellington, 3 April - If New Zealand can’t recover from the economic “heart attack” of self-imposed lockdown, it could face GDP losses at Great Depression levels, according to a New Zealand Initiative research note. While the Covid-19 pandemic has not ruined New Zealand’s economic capabilities, the lockdown has forced the country into an unprecedented productivity pause which the Initiative’s senior fellow Bryce Wilkinson says could slice away about $10,000 per household this year. Read more