The domestic political year has started with housing density back on the agenda. Is Christopher Luxon walking away from the bipartisan housing accord? Read more
Last week's headlines suggested another wobble in housing reform. Signals from the Prime Minister about easing Auckland's intensification settings appeared to undercut Housing Minister Chris Bishop. Read more
The paint was still drying on the Auckland convention centre when Christopher Luxon delivered his State of the Nation speech on Monday. Some of the furniture had not arrived. Read more
Headlines this week suggest a retreat. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has signalled a softening of Auckland's housing intensification. Read more
I do not get to Münster often these days, but whenever I am there, I feel drawn to its town hall. This is where, in 1648, diplomats signed the Peace of Westphalia. Read more
To many on the political left, the Mont Pelerin Society represents something akin to a spectre. It is frequently portrayed as a secretive cabal of market fundamentalists operating in the shadows to dismantle the state and privatise the public sphere. Read more
Some ideas cost nothing to believe but a great deal to implement. Political commentator Rob Henderson calls them “luxury beliefs” – convictions that signal virtue among the comfortable while imposing very real costs on those with much less room to manoeuvre. Read more
Across the democratic world, voters are losing patience with the machinery that stands between a vote and its result – the courts, parliamentary procedures and constitutional limits that do not care who won. The usual explanations – economic anxiety, cultural backlash, social media – capture something real, but they miss a deeper problem. Read more
After many difficult years, 2025 felt different. It was not easier. Read more
Last week, boxes of fudge arrived at New Zealand’s Parliament. Not as a festive treat, but as a political weapon. Read more
It tasted like a normal glass of milk. Maybe a little bit thinner than I would have expected for the 3 percent fat content advertised on the bottle. Read more
Every year around Christmas time, the government provides a sneak preview of the coming year's budget. At the same time, Treasury provides its take on the state of the books. Read more
For over three decades, the Resource Management Act has been a significant hindrance to New Zealand's economic growth. It promised sustainable management but delivered housing crises, infrastructure delays, stifled productivity and environmental decline. Read more
In many countries, an educational study claiming a radical improvement in mathematics learning would receive considerable media attention. But not, it seems, in New Zealand. Read more
A plan typically answers straightforward questions: what is needed, what should be done first, and why. This month, Ministers will receive the Infrastructure Commission’s 30-year National Infrastructure Plan. Read more