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As Australians approach a federal election, asylum seekers and people smugglers are turning out to be a key issue for the fifth time in a row. New Zealanders may look sceptically at this: Why is this captivating the Australian public? Read more
One of the major downsides of the 2008 financial crisis has been the re-emergence of ‘macro-prudential’ regulation. This sort of regulation, hoping to limit systemic risk in the banking sector, is currently fashionable but signals a return to the 1970s mentality of economic fine-tuning, albeit with different tools. Read more
Auckland’s population is projected to be well over two million by 2041. This will place enormous pressure on road and transport infrastructure. Read more
A few weeks ago, I spoke at a breakfast event opened by Maurice Williamson, Minister for customs, Statistics, Land Information and Building and Construction. I wish I had taken the Minister’s remarks more seriously, as I would have been less surprised by the government’s announcement last week: the government is considering options to make credit card companies and online payment services like PayPal collect taxes on online shopping imports. Read more
The wowsers are back on a futile mission to enforce public morality through statute. In Australia, as in New Zealand, a new temperance movement is testing the boundaries of prohibition to encourage better manners. Read more
One of the great, yet little known Kiwi academic giants has passed away. Professor Kenneth Robert Minogue, a New Zealander by birth, Australian by upbringing, and Englishman in his working life, has died at 83. Read more
There has been no shortage of excitement in Australian politics in recent years. Treachery, back-stabbing, scandals and defections are among the staples of Australian democracy (which one might now instinctively misspell as demo-crazy). Read more
Recently the government announced it would fund KickStart, a breakfast-in-schools programme designed specifically for decile 1 to 4 schools. The announcement was generally well received but did raise an uncomfortable question: is it the state’s role to feed people’s kids? Read more
Has the Australian Labor Party (ALP) lost the plot? The evidence suggests as much after the governing party’s fifth successful leadership coup in 10 years returned Kevin Rudd to the office of Prime Minister on Wednesday. Read more
It is one of those ideas that come up again and again without ever being properly scrutinised – that a sovereign wealth fund (SWF) like Norway’s is a fantastic idea that deserves to be copied elsewhere, even in New Zealand. Last week, the National Business Review reported that Methanex New Zealand chief executive Harvey Weake is making the case for a Norwegian-style SWF. Read more