“There’s always a reason to say no, but if we keep saying no, we’ll keep going nowhere.” With these words in his ‘State of the Nation’ speech last week, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon diagnosed a critical barrier to New Zealand’s economic growth: a culture of negativity and excessive caution. To read the full article on The Australian website, click here. Read more

If you believe last week’s hysterical headlines from Germany, you might think the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) is about to take power in Europe’s largest economy. The reality is more complicated. Read more

“There’s always a reason to say no, but if we keep saying no, we’ll keep going nowhere.” With these words in his ‘State of the Nation’ speech last week, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon diagnosed a critical barrier to New Zealand’s economic growth: a culture of negativity and excessive caution. Only a few days later, his government provided the perfect test case for Luxon’s diagnosis. Read more

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s State of the Nation speech yesterday presents a clear shift towards economic growth. While familiar aspirational rhetoric featured prominently, his initiatives deserve support. Read more

Democracy rarely dies suddenly. It often erodes slowly as previously unthinkable developments become normalised, one bit at a time. Read more

We can only hope that New Zealand’s politicians had a good break over the summer because 2025 promises to be a hell of a ride. If the government thought last year was tough, this year will be even more demanding. Read more

When Newsroom’s editor Jonathan Milne invited me to write one of two special pieces for the summer break, I faced quite the conundrum. My options were to review a work of non-fiction or write a column about hope and optimism for 2025. Read more

When a councillor in New Zealand’s Carterton District was elected on a platform of fiscal responsibility, she could not have expected to be barred from participating in budget deliberations. Yet that is exactly what happened when council bureaucrats deemed her campaign promises a “conflict of interest” that disqualified her from key financial decisions. Read more

If one word could sum up 2024, “sobering” might be it. This week’s final economic data for the year – from Treasury’s half-year update to yesterday’s GDP numbers – reads like the opposite of a Christmas wish list. Read more

Here is a simple business scenario: You operate ferries across Cook Strait, between New Zealand’s North and South Islands. Your vessels are ageing and need replacement. Read more