Oliver is the Executive Director of The New Zealand Initiative. Before joining the Initiative, he was a Research Fellow at the Centre for Independent Studies in Sydney, the Chief Economist at the Policy Exchange in London, and an advisor in the UK House of Lords.
Oliver holds a master's degree in economics and business administration and a PhD in Law from Bochum University in Germany.
Oliver is available to comment on all of the Initiative’s research areas.
Phone: +64 4 499 0790
Apparently it is crunch time for Greece -- again. Over the next few days, we will find out whether Greece will stay in the eurozone, whether it will receive more bailout money or whether it will finally default (again). Read more
Dr Oliver Hartwich discusses social bonds on ONE News, preceding the government's announcement of four new social bonds. The New Zealand Initiative released their report 'Investing for Success: Social impact bonds and the future of public services' a few weeks prior. Read more
Here is a brain teaser: Suppose an aeroplane takes an hour to fly from A to B on a calm day. Now imagine that it is a windy so that on the way out, the plane’s speed is reduced by headwinds. Read more
If the definition of madness is ‘doing something over and over again while expecting a different result’, then Europe is certainly going mad. At the same time that European integration is heading for the rocks, the leaders of France and Germany are calling for more of the same. Read more
Budget 2015 was delivered yesterday, and my colleagues below take a look at this mixed bag of good and questionable decisions. But what about the overall direction of the government? Read more
At a time when Britain is considering whether to leave the EU, Greece still teeters on the brink of bankruptcy, and Brussels cannot find a response to the refugee crisis in the Mediterranean, many ordinary Europeans will question what European integration has ever done for them. For Europeans concerned about the value of the EU, one project has always been cited as exemplifying what is so good about it. Read more
One of the greatest advances of civilisation is also one of the least obvious: branded products. We take brands for granted because they are everywhere. Read more
There is no question that the British Conservatives’ election result is way better than any pollster had predicted. Achieving an absolute majority of the seats is a major feat for Prime Minister David Cameron – and one that probably not even Cameron himself would have thought possible. Read more
Britain went to the polls yesterday but it could be a while until we know the result. It may take even longer until we know what the result means. Read more
Should Australian residence visas be for sale? That is the question the Productivity Commission has to investigate now as outlined in a paper it released last week. Read more
Dr Oliver Hartwich discusses the concept of price-based immigration systems, whereby immigration would use entry fees as the primary determinant for who gains entry to a country. 5 May 2015. Read more
Since the free trade agreement with China came into effect in 2008, exports to China have soared. The trading relationship with China has been helping the New Zealand economy navigate through the past years of global uncertainty. Read more
Imagine the following scenario. A large company’s 78-year-old chairman and former chief executive, who also happens to be a major shareholder, fails in his bid to oust the current chief executive. Read more
Talk about a capital gains tax (“CGT”) as a solution for the Auckland housing market has heated up again over the past couple of weeks. The Reserve Bank’s Deputy Governor, Grant Spencer, suggested that the tax treatment of housing needed to be changed. Read more
The UK elections are only two weeks away and typically, at this stage of the campaign, one should have at least a rough idea what is going to happen. Not so this time. Read more