Managing the government’s fiscal deficit need not mean cutting social expenditure.
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Why the TPP11 will have to go back before Parliament
Bill English seems to think that New Zealand could become a part of a new, non-US Trans Pacific Partnership trade bloc without Parliament having to look at the issue. I'm pretty sure he is wrong about that.
Read MoreExplaining NZ's record high prison population
The prison population has hit 10,000 - an all-time high. 56% of these inmates are Maori - another all time high. What's going on?
Read MoreThe Price of Labour and the Value of Work
Do residential care workers deserve the big pay increase they are getting?
Read MoreBetter a Banker in Rolls Royce than a Fascist in a Tank
The new President of France, Emmanuel Macron, wants French people to "embrace the future". Time will tell if he can make that possible, but his is a better message than the Trumps of this world who want to embrace the past
Read MoreIt's a Sicilian message
Alfred Ngaro appears to think the Government can stop its critics taking part in government programmes. That's not just wrong from a political morality standpoint, it's flat out illegal.
Read MoreTrump's firing of James Comey - what on earth is going on?
Donald Trump's firing of FBI Director James Comey either means that he's covering up his campaign's criminal links with Russian agents, or he's punishing a top law enforcement official for not doing exactly what he wants. Neither explanation bodes well for the USA.
Read MoreRepealing blasphemous libel - what took us so long?
The Irish might be going to prosecute Stephen Fry for blasphemy? Quick - let's amend our laws so that we don't ever end up doing something so silly!
Read MoreThe Productivity Commission tries to think about the Education and Training Sector
The report of the Productivity Commission on the Tertiary Education Sector “New Models of Tertiary Education” is complacent.
Read MoreThe case for open doors
Put aside the populism and look at what immigration really brings us and what choices we really face
Read MoreWord spread because word will spread
If you know something about a case that a court has suppressed, when can you safely tell another person about it? According the the Supreme Court, it all depends.
Read MoreWhy Matthew Hooton is wrong - again
Matthew Hooton being wrong about something is not usually worth writing a post about. But when he speaks ill of one of my friends ... well, action must be taken.
Read MoreBolger and Neoliberalism
If Jim Bolger now opposes Ruthanasia, why did he preside over its implementation?
Read MoreHow do you solve a problem like (North) Korea?
Role play any potential United States action against North Korea and you soon see the limited choice they face. So what should the US do? What role can China play? And what's best for New Zealand?
Read MoreHas fiscal responsibility become a false idol?
With most of the economic policy options for the coming NZ election now in front of us, it would appear we are continuing down the route of GDP growth, low inflation, government surpluses and Triple A credit ratings as measures of economic policy success. But, these are only means towards some desired ends or ultimate goals?
Read MoreHow to drive voting & policy debate this election... and how not to
What odds a policy debate this election? And how do we elevate it above more sensationalism and dirty politics? Here are some dos and don'ts
Read MoreRedesigning the Reserve Bank?
Are Labour’s proposals for the changing the way the Reserve Bank operates sensible or nutty (as nutty as the current legislation)?
Read MoreHave We the Right Approach for Regional Wellbeing?
Past policies of banging on about economic growth have failed. A new report argues we should strategise differently with more comprehensive goals.
Read MoreHow to lose when you win
Jordan Williams' apparently crushing defamation victory from last year carried within it the seeds of its own demise. And in overturning that victory, the High Court has some less than complementry things to say about his own behaviour.
Read MoreSuffer the little children to come unto Trump
Trump and his enablers tell us bombing a Syrian air-force base was driven by humanitarian principles. It was not. It was about ratings.
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