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The GFC had many casualties. In New Zealand, one was the former Securities Commission. Read more

Monetary policy always had an air of the mystical. The past is filled with fallen sages like Alan Greenspan, inflation-warriors like Paul Volcker and gurus like Milton Friedman. Read more

Yesterday, even with all the lights on in the debating chamber, the Minister of Finance sounded like he was whistling in the dark. Grant Robertson’s Budget was what we have come to expect from this government. Read more

New Zealand’s border settings continue to confound. In November last year, even the cautious Ministry of Health advised the Government that MIQ no longer served any useful purpose. Read more

One key to happiness is not letting your expectations run ahead of what is possible, as that only leads to disappointment. But what has been announced thus far makes for a depressing Budget Day. Read more

Those on the economic right sometimes wish for flat taxes. If inflation continues to run at 7 percent and the country’s tax thresholds do not change, we will eventually wind up with one. Read more

Successful economies have low unemployment. However, these are no ordinary times, and New Zealand’s ultra-low unemployment rate of 3.2% should worry everyone. Read more

Last week, Inland Revenue Minister David Parker gave a speech titled “shining the light on unfairness in the tax system”. His speech defended an Inland Revenue investigation into the “tax paid by the wealthiest New Zealanders relative to their economic income”. Read more

If only the Government’s public relations staff were as good as Lotto New Zealand’s. Twice each week, Lotto asks us to imagine those millions of dollars coming our way in the Powerball draw. Read more