Why Taiwan is winning against Covid-19
Taiwan is one of the few countries to “flatten the curve” while maintaining an open domestic economy. Earlier this week, Taiwan only had 104 active cases of Covid-19. Read more
8 May, 2020
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Fool me once, fool me twice
As the Government looks ahead to the end of the Covid-19 public health emergency it should first look to the past for examples of how good policy intentions in a recovery can go horribly wrong. For instance, a paper by US-based macroeconomists David and Christina Romer shows that fiscal headroom is crucial because it means countries with low-debt will experience much milder downturns after a crisis than highly leveraged countries. Read more
8 May, 2020
Media Release: New Zealand can’t afford any boondoggles in the post-Covid-19 recovery, new report says
Wellington, 8 May 2020 - More economic freedom will be the key to surviving the next phase of the Covid-19 recovery, and the Government should step aside as soon as it can, according to a new report For better or for worse: How governments respond to crises by The New Zealand Initiative. After placing the country in enforced lockdown for nearly two months, the Government is now considering its options to reopen many Kiwi businesses sometime in the next few weeks. Read more
8 May, 2020
The end of a beautiful friendship
It was an unusual document Angela Merkel just found in her in-tray. Written in French and on joint letterhead, 15 members of France’s Parliament penned an open letter to the German Chancellor. Read more
Dr Oliver Hartwich
4 May, 2020
Paving the path to recovery
New Zealand has come out of lockdown to enter the purgatory of Three-dom (hopefully for only a couple of weeks). The path towards a new normal remains long and littered with challenges. Read more
Dr Oliver Hartwich
1 May, 2020
Media Release: Don’t toy with NZ’s trade network to fix Covid-19 recession, says new report
Wellington, 30 April - Now is not the time to rethink New Zealand’s hard-won network of trade ties around the world with protectionist policies, warns a new report Reinforcing New Zealand’s trade relationships after Covid-19 by the New Zealand Initiative. While the Covid-19 crisis exposed vulnerabilities in the global supply chain, the answer isn’t to create new trade barriers, said the report’s author and chief editor Nathan Smith. Read more
30 April, 2020
Lessons from South Korea: Looking 40 days into the future
South Korea has quickly become a model country for effectively containing Covid-19 without needing a national lockdown. Given that the liberal democracy of South Korea is 40 days ahead of New Zealand on the epidemiological curve, it offers important lessons on how to balance an increase of economic activity with continued efforts towards virus elimination as New Zealand leaves Alert Level 4. Read more
24 April, 2020
Media Release: Covid-19 time travellers: assessing South Korea’s virus response
Wellington, 24 April - South Korea has tackled the Covid-19 crisis competently and New Zealand could learn from the East Asian country as it considers moving to Alert Level 3, according to a new report from the New Zealand Initiative. While no country comparison is perfect, both New Zealand and South Korea are highly-wired and technologically advanced liberal democracies. Read more
24 April, 2020
Dr Oliver Hartwich's presentation to the Epidemic Response Committee
The New Zealand Initiative’s Executive Director Oliver Hartwich presented to the Epidemic Response Committee today, where he outlined his vision for New Zealand’s social, political and economic future. You can watch Oliver’s presentation here (time:1:52). Read more
23 April, 2020
How much should it cost to contain a pandemic?
Over the past week, protesters across the US have held demonstrations to demand “liberation” from lockdown measures brought in by states to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus. Fuelled by a belief that the economy must reopen to protect the health of people’s businesses, these public gatherings (often attended by anti-vaxxers and far-right activists) make for colourful television pictures — and divisive social media messages that President Donald Trump has been only too happy to promote. Read more
23 April, 2020