RNZ: Major General John Howard on the cancelling of Canberra meeting

Major General John Howard is a retired military leader who was Chief of Defence Intelligence for the NZDF and was also Deputy Director for Commonwealth Integration at the US Defense Intelligence Agency. He talks to Guyon Espiner about Defence Minister Paul Goldsmith cancelling an appearance at a meeting in Canberra with his Australian and Japanese counterparts. Read more

Major General John G. Howard, MNZM (Ret)
RNZ
19 August, 2026

Media release: New land market watchdog a welcome check on council zoning

Wellington (Wednesday, 19 August 2026) – The New Zealand Initiative welcomes today’s announcement that the coming urban planning system will include a competition watchdog. Hon Chris Bishop, Minister for RMA Reform, and Simon Court, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for RMA Reform, announced today that the coming Planning Bill will include an independent Urban Land Market Officer. Read more

Dr Eric Crampton
Media release
19 August, 2026

Podcast: Why New Zealand can no longer afford to be naive about security

In this episode, Oliver talks to John Howard about New Zealand's changing security environment, from the firing of Defence Minister Chris Penk to the Semtex drone at Leipzig Airport and the SIS threat assessment naming China. John argues New Zealand does not need to become fearful, but it does need to become more alert, better prepared and more serious about protecting sensitive information. Read more

Dr Oliver Hartwich
Major General John G. Howard, MNZM (Ret)
Podcast
18 August, 2026

Newstalk ZB: Dr Oliver Hartwich on Act's promise to reset government agencies

Dr Oliver Hartwich talked to Mike Hosking on Newstalk ZB about Act's promise to reset government agencies Parliament's already written merits into the Public Service Act, yet departments are still pursuing the diversity agenda. He says they can explain how much an individual ethnic group is paid, yet Treasury can't say how many economists it employs - so there's still work to do. Read more

Dr Oliver Hartwich
Mike Hosking
Newstalk ZB
17 August, 2026

Nobody is planning to invade us

If nobody is planning to invade New Zealand, why would we need a defence force? So runs the logic of those questioning the decision to increase defence spending. Read more

Major General John G. Howard, MNZM (Ret)
Insights Newsletter
14 August, 2026

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