Last year Prince Harry interviewed Obama. The former president told the Prince that to improve things you have to find common ground between people. Read more
In a classic Simpsons episode, Homer teaches a night course on having a successful marriage. Egged on by students wanting ever more details of their private life, Homer errs on the side of pleasing the students but irritating Marge – who kicks him out of the house. Read more
The meth testing debacle is one of the biggest government failures in recent times. The Office of the Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor’s report and the surrounding discussion, much of it predating the report by two years, has shone light on the primary cause: a lack of evidence in policy making. Read more
Oliver Hartwich speaks to Mike Hosking on the Fair Pay Agreements. These agreements will set minimum standards for wages and employment conditions like allowances, weekend and night rates, hours of work and leave arrangements for all workers within industries. Read more
The counterrevolution started in Auckland last night. That is when the Initiative hosted British educator Katharine Birbalsingh for a dinner lecture in front of an audience of almost 300 teachers, school trustees, business leaders and politicians. Read more
Choosing the best school for your child is an important decision. The best school, whether it is primary or secondary, can have a big impact on your child’s wellbeing and success in school. Read more
“You New Zealanders don’t know how lucky you are,” said virtually every Australian I met at the recent Friedman Conference in Sydney. New Zealand, they pointed out, had a better tax system with GST across the board rather than at different rates on different products. Read more
Having a change in government is a bit like moving house. When you pack up the house for a move, you get to take a hard look at a lot of stuff that’s accumulated over the years – things that might have been a mistake to buy in the first place and almost certainly should have been gotten rid of ages ago. Read more
Katharine Birbalsingh is the founder and headmistress of Michaela Community School, a free school in London. She started her own school after declaring Britain's state education system “broken” because it kept "poor children poor." She's been called the "strictest teacher in Britain," but Katharine Birbalsingh tells Hayley Holt on Breakfast that her students "love the fact that it's strict". Read more
Today on World Smokefree Day, it is time to listen to the needs and preferences of smokers. Yes, that will sound counterintuitive – perhaps even abhorrent – to some. Read more
On World No Tobacco Day Wendyl Nissen interviews Jenesa Jeram about how smokeless nicotine delivery products (e-cigarettes, snus, and heat-not-burn) can be used to help New Zealand become smoke-free. Read more
New Zealand born London headteacher Katharine Birbalsingh founded Michaela Community School. It is often referred to as Britain's strictest school. Read more
Jenesa Jeram tells James Coleman on World No Tobacco Day how vaping could be the pathway to a smoke-free New Zealand. Her recent report Smoke and Vapour: the changing world of tobacco harm reduction calls for a range of smokeless nicotine delivery products to be made available to smokers wanting to cut down or quit. Read more
When asked whether they own their home or rent, some people with a mortgage like to joke that the bank really owns it. If you don’t make your mortgage instalment, the bank can, in the limit, take the house away. Read more
Wellington (30 May 2018): The New Zealand Initiative is celebrating World Smokefree Day (Thursday 31 May) as an opportunity to take a more compassionate approach to tobacco control policy. A recent report by The New Zealand Initiative Smoke and Vapour: the changing world of tobacco harm reduction calls for a range of smokeless nicotine delivery products (e-cigarettes, snus, and heat-not-burn) to be made available to smokers wanting to cut down or quit. Read more