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Dr Bryce Wilkinson ONZM

Senior Fellow

Bryce is a Senior Fellow at The New Zealand Initiative, and also the Director of the Wellington-based economic consultancy firm Capital Economics. Prior to setting this up in 1997 he was a Director of, and shareholder in, First NZ Capital. Before moving into investment banking in 1985, he worked in the New Zealand Treasury, reaching the position of Director. Bryce holds a PhD in economics from the University of Canterbury and was a Harkness Fellow at Harvard University. He is a Fellow of the Law and Economics Association of New Zealand.

Bryce is available for comment on fiscal issues, our poverty, inequality and welfare research. He also has a strong background in public policy analysis including monetary policy, capital markets research and microeconomic advisory work.

Bryce was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2025 New Year's honours for his significant contributions to public policy formation and economic research, spanning his influential work at Treasury during New Zealand's major economic reforms and his extensive research on fiscal discipline and regulatory quality.

Phone: +64 4 499 0790

Email: bryce.wilkinson@nzinitiative.org.nz

Recent Work

2025 07 24 OIA

Submission: Overseas Investment (National Interest Test and Other Matters) Amendment Bill

1. INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY CONCLUSION 1.1 This submission on the Overseas Investment (National Interest Test and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2025 is made by The New Zealand Initiative (the Initiative), a Wellington-based think tank supported primarily by major New Zealand businesses. Read more

Dr Bryce Wilkinson ONZM
Submission
23 July, 2025

The Platform: Dr Bryce Wilkinson on the Regulatory Standards Bill

Dr Bryce Wilkinson talked to Sean Plunket on The Platform about the Regulatory Standards Bill, explaining why the legislation is necessary despite seeming redundant. Dr Wilkinson argued that the bill elevates essential regulatory principles to a higher statutory status, ensuring government accountability and protecting individual rights by providing a check against potentially oppressive legislation. Read more

Dr Bryce Wilkinson ONZM
Michael Laws
The Platform
26 May, 2025

Preaching to the unconverted: My regulatory revelation

Last night, I found myself standing at St Peter’s Church for the “Red Tape Hui,” not to confess my economic sins, but to proselytise about the virtues of the prospective Regulatory Standards Bill. The event, hosted by Labour’s Greg O’Connor, MP for Ōhāriu and Assistant Speaker of the House, featured a panel including Dr Bryce Edwards from The Integrity Institute and Craig Renney from the Council of Trade Unions. Read more

Dr Bryce Wilkinson ONZM
Insights Newsletter
21 March, 2025

Podcast: The People's Portfolio: A $571 Billion Question

In this episode, Oliver talks to Bryce about his new report "The People's Portfolio", which examines New Zealand's $571 billion in Crown-owned assets and makes the case for privatising many of them to improve economic efficiency rather than simply raising funds. They discuss how current government ownership of these assets is actually costing taxpayers money, the historical success of privatisations like Telecom, and the challenges of implementing a politically viable privatisation strategy. Read more

Dr Oliver Hartwich
Dr Bryce Wilkinson ONZM
28 February, 2025

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