A book currently climbing the German bestseller charts caught my attention recently, not least because its title poses a question that seems at once paradoxical and profound. Jan Loffeld’s Wenn nichts fehlt, wo Gott fehlt (“When nothing is missing where God is missing”) examines a growing phenomenon across Western societies that transcends conventional secularisation. Read more

The New Zealand Initiative mourns the passing of our esteemed Adjunct Senior Fellow, Emeritus Professor Des Gorman, who died peacefully at home on 2 July 2025, surrounded by his family. Des was a towering figure in New Zealand medicine and a passionate advocate for health reform. Read more

Next week, The New Zealand Initiative will take more than three dozen business leaders to the Netherlands. Why the Netherlands? Read more

Something odd is happening in New Zealand. The government wants to pass a law that would require ministers to explain their regulatory decisions. Read more

In two weeks, we will take a delegation of New Zealand Initiative members to the Netherlands. We had hoped to study Dutch excellence in infrastructure, technology and regulatory reform. Read more

Later this month, our organisation, The New Zealand Initiative, will take a large delegation of top New Zealand business leaders to the Netherlands. It is not a trade mission but an ideas exploration. Read more

Was it really an “excellent” phone call with Russia’s dictator, Vladimir Putin? Did it signify, as President Donald Trump declared last week, an imminent breakthrough for peace in Ukraine? Read more

As this edition of Quadrant reaches readers, I shall be making final preparations for The New Zealand Initiative’s fourth international business delegation. In late June, we will take more than three dozen senior New Zealand business leaders to the Netherlands. Read more

On Tuesday morning, I attended a breakfast in New Zealand’s Parliament. The latest report from NZIER, the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research, to Xero, the online accounting software company, “Going Digital in 2025,” was unveiled. Read more