As US military strategist John Boyd said about his “OODA loop” theory (observe, orient, decide, act), if one’s orientation is out by just a millimetre, the entire strategy fails. A new site called mediabias.co.nz measures the political bias of New Zealand news services and it shows those worried about media bias are worried about the wrong thing. Read more
In an opinion piece in the NZ Herald, Oliver Hartwich argued that New Zealanders are actually quite unlucky right now. He discusses this column with Jesse Mulligan on Radio NZ and explains why he thinks we are going wrong and why we don't appear to know it. 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
All eyes are on New Zealand. In the lead-up to the election, Time magazine admired our "calmer democracy." The World Health Organisation once again praised our Covid-19 management. Read more
A distinct advantage that the bench sciences and medical sciences have over the social sciences is the ability to run experiments. If a clinician wants to run a trial to check whether a new drug might work, the regulatory hurdles can be substantial, but the trial is certainly possible. Read more
In this week’s New Zealand Initiative podcast, the delayed election is finally decided. But the next term for a Labour majority government will be tough as it wrestles with the consequences of Covid-19. Read more
Oliver Hartwich talks to Tom Swtizer on ABC radio about the NZ election and why voters chose health over wealth.
The New Zealand Initiative · Oliver Hartwich on the NZ election and why voters chose health over wealth Read more
The sense of relief was palpable as the long election campaign finally ended. It is even better that the result delivered a clear mandate without the need of compromises, deal-making and brinkmanship. Read more
Winston Peters will exit politics for the third time in his career. I spotted his ghost at Parliament the other day. Read more
In 2018, the Labour-led Government proudly released its first wellbeing budget. It would be great if Labour uses its second term to truly focus on wellbeing. Read more
Fresh numbers show the Labour-led administration was a big spender even before Covid-19 and New Zealand incomes overall in 2025 might be less than in 2019. Last week the International Monetary Fund (IMF) published its forecasts out to 2025. Read more
Eric Crampton talks to Bryan Crump on Radio NZ Nights about the problem with climate policy and how this can be utilised for an effective Covid recovery.
The New Zealand Initiative · Eric Crampton the problem with climate policy Read more
Once upon a time, Boris Johnson scored an emphatic election victory. It delivered him an 80-seat majority in the House of Commons, and it was won on a promise: To sort out Brexit. Read more
Read our submission, written by Dr Bryce Wilkinson to Treasury and the Reserve Bank. This submission is in response to the third round of consultation on Phase 2 of the review of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand Act. Read more
Election campaigns are strange times. There can be a lot of talk about policy, but the real policy apparatus of government goes into limbo. Read more