New Zealand has long struggled with housing affordability. Since 2000, real house prices nearly trebled. Read more
This episode of the Freely Speaking podcast features executive director Oliver Hartwich, chief economist Eric Crampton, senior economist Matt Burgess and senior fellow Bryce Wilkinson. The team unpicks the strange lack of deep conversation in New Zealand and why Kiwis seem so reluctant to talk about the big issues. Read more
One of the first management books I ever read was Tom Peters’ A Passion for Excellence. I must have received it in the late 1980s from a family friend. Read more
If you really want to spoil your next pleasant weekend urban walk, here’s a suggestion. Pull out your phone, open homes.co.nz and check the estimated prices of every house along the way. Read more
In this episode of the New Zealand Initiative’s “Freely Speaking” podcast, around the table is executive director Oliver Hartwich, chief economist Eric Crampton, senior economist Matt Burgess and senior fellow Bryce Wilkinson. The team unpacks the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s curious steps into climate change politics and mulls over the central bank's real mandate. Read more
A Joe Biden Presidency looks increasingly likely. But the election was nail-bitingly close. Read more
It can be tough to know what to make of events as they happen on election days. In New Zealand, the task of working out who is winning is fairly simple. Read more
There is something special about Adele, Madonna and Sia. Because these pop divas are only ever referred to by their first names. Read more
The resurgence of Covid-19 in Europe is ending hopes of a quick recovery from a-sharp “V-shaped” recession. Will it be a U-shaped recession, an L-shaped recession? Read more
When Odysseus sailed the treacherous waters between the monsters Scylla and Charybdis, he just had to survive. Holding onto a fig tree, Odysseus eventually made it through. Read more
At the end of October, governor of the Reserve Bank Adrian Orr boldly asserted in a speech that climate change is “a key risk to global financial stability.” He made the case for urgent “transformation” as an “important, imminent, and personal” issue. Although the Reserve Bank Act does not mention climate change, the RBNZ is responsible for financial stability. Read more
There is a real chance that Kiwis will miss out on celebrating Christmas at home, because spaces in managed isolation are booking out fast. From now on, everyone traveling back to New Zealand needs a voucher for their two-week quarantine. Read more
Last week the Governor of the Reserve Bank Adrian Orr issued a call to action on climate change. Titled “Progressing Climate Action by Driving Transformational Change” it sounded like a political stump speech. Read more
It all finally started coming together in the 2021 Budget. The pieces existed before it, but nobody had put them together. Read more
Voters rewarded the Coalition Government for saving lives as the Covid-19 pandemic swept the world. Now the new Government must save livelihoods. Read more