Sir Peter Jackson, a man of many talents, has put New Zealand on the map again. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey has made the NZ film industry bigger and better than ever, revolutionising cinema by filming with double the usual number of frames (48). Read more
Luke Malpass examined why New Zealand has some of the most expensive, but poorest quality houses in the world. He comments on the link between local government finance and housing affordability, and analysed the effects of regulations on house prices and quality. Read more
It was a different era: Vague prospects of making money on the internet were enough to mobilise billions of dollars. Political scientists still believed in the end of history and the final triumph of liberal democracy. Read more
The announcement of ‘KiwiBuild’ by Labour leader David Shearer was certainly bold. Under Labour, for the next decade the government will build 10,000 homes every year, for less than $600,000 each. Read more
World share markets rose markedly on Monday this week: the US S&P 500 (by 2%), London FTSE (by 2.4%), Paris CAC (by 2.9%), Tokyo Nikkei (by 1.4%), and the Hong Kong Hang Seng (by 0.5%). Europe saw the biggest daily gain in 10 weeks, but from the lowest levels for months. Read more
Does watching TV change your life? And in particular, do TV commercials change your consumption habits? Read more
When will we finally get a lasting solution to the Greek problem? Not a stop-gap measure, but one that actually puts the country on a sustainable path towards recovery? Read more
With the affordability of housing currently circulating the walls of parliament, it seems timely to ask, why are houses in New Zealand so expensive? Luke Malpass, Research Fellow at The New Zealand Initiative, who is currently conducting significant and intensive research in this area, will be presenting a talk to try and explain why housing is so costly. Read more
In 2010, the Ministry of Education introduced new National Standards for primary schools. In September this year, stuff.co.nz published the first data set. Read more
The policy problem of ‘affordable housing’ is all the rage. But aside from a vague sense that housing is too expensive, what does the term actually mean? Read more
The first week of November was Gender Diversity Week, which is a sad reminder that no country has yet achieved gender equality. The Global Gender Gap Report 2012, released in late October, shows New Zealand ranked sixth out of 135 countries, having closed 78% of the gap between men and women. Read more
As the European Union is mobilising hundreds of billions of euros to save the continent’s currency, it would be reassuring to know that it can be trusted with money. After last week’s annual report from the European Court of Auditors, there is little reason for such optimism. Read more
No one should ever compile a cost-benefit analysis of the United States elections. After a campaign that lasted about 18 months (and felt even longer), and having spent an estimated US$6 billion promoting both candidates, nothing has changed. Read more
New Zealand’s second internet cable is once again making headlines, this time courtesy of Internet entrepreneur Kim Dotcom. German born Dotcom has hatched a plan to resurrect Pacific Fibre and build a second fibre cable to the United States. Read more
When the New Zealand Electoral Commission was asked to review how the Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) electoral system was operating, the outcome was pre-ordained: the report would extol the virtues of MMP, recommend a reduction in the 5% threshold, and scrap the one seat rule. And so it has come to pass. Read more