In this election year, the crisis in New Zealand’s health system stands as one of the nation’s primary concerns. So, on Wednesday, we held our first Health Innovators’ Summit’ in Auckland, kindly sponsored by nib. Read more
Another week, another transport policy announcement. On Sunday, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and freshly-minted Transport Minister David Parker released the Government’s preferred option for a second Auckland harbour crossing. Read more
In politics, there are certain things you need to be taken seriously. Some are formal things. Read more
New Zealand’s current legislative approach to overseas investment is a mess. It is a mess because it does not focus on what is important – facilitating strong connections to the rest of the world while protecting New Zealand’s sovereignty. Read more
In the world of politics, timing is everything. And sometimes, the timing of events can create a curious contrast that cries out for a closer look. Read more
Donald Trump convinced himself and a lot of Americans he could build a wall at America’s southern border and make Mexico pay for it. It was an obviously terrible idea. Read more
A few months ago, I stepped into a parallel universe. I was following up a routine administrative task and soon found myself outside a building I’d never seen before, after 10 years working at Victoria University. Read more
It can be hard for a country to admit that one of its idols has feet of clay. As it happens, one of New Zealand’s educational idols not only had feet of clay, but her name was Clay. Read more
In Tuesday’s parliamentary questions, Minister of Finance Grant Robertson engaged in some impressive word play. He had previously dismissed exempting fresh food and vegetables from GST. Read more
From the vantage point of my earlier career at think tanks in London and Sydney, I have had front-row seats to the theatre of value-added tax (VAT) and goods and services tax (GST) policy lunacy. I have seen this seemingly innocent taxation mechanism morph into a clumsy beast, causing bureaucratic nightmares and economic distortions. Read more
As a sometimes absent-minded academic, I’m often very grateful for non-academic staff. Helping me set up my courses before the trimester begins. Read more
There is plenty of room for honest disagreement on economic policy. Normally, it’s about trade-offs among worthy goals. Read more
Politicians are naturally drawn to top-down solutions. For one thing, they afford Ministers the illusion of control. Read more
New Zealand prides itself on being an open trading nation. When it comes to trade in goods and services this claim is certainly true. Read more
Everyone knows that Wellington’s CBD will thrive when those who know best ban cars. People will love coming into the CBD to buy bulky products, such as a microwave, to cart home on the handlebars of their bicycles. Read more