Archbishop Desmond Tutu was one of my heroes. Here’s why
Read MoreDesmond Tutu 1931-2021: A hero who dared to hope in a moral universe
Features
Our response to mosque attacks honours lessons learned 75 years ago
VE Day is 75 years ago this month; a victory in Europe that had profound implications for Africa. But we are still learning to grapple with ideas of racial superiority
Read MoreWhy timing is everything: 'A time to refrain from embracing' starts today
Timing is key in politics and behind all the decisions, the government has had to consider not just the right moves but the right time to make those moves
Read MoreXmas with your conservative uncle: a survival guide
Are you dreading the prospect of a day with this man of straw? Here’s an insiders guide to getting through lunch without annoying your mum.
Read MoreWhat Happened to Egalitarian New Zealand?
New Zealand is a less egalitarian society today than it was when I was growing up in the 1950s.
Read MoreMuddling Over Methane
New Zealand has got itself into a right proper muddle over methane emissions and their impact on climate change. A simple change to the proposed legislation would sort it out.
The proposed Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill treats biogenic methane emissions differently from all other carbon emissions. The latter are to be measured net so that emissions from fossil fuels can be offset by carbon stored in trees. However, methane from livestock is measured gross.
Read MoreHow Important Is Local Knowledge?
Many foreign appointments to leading public agencies have proved disappointing. Is that inevitable?
The discussion on the quality of economic advice, which we reported last week, has spilled over into a discussion about whether so many senior appointments should be of non-New Zealanders. Recall I discussed the failure to develop career paths within the New Zealand public service.
Read MoreDoubts and Hopes About The Treasury
The kerfuffle over the budget leaks precipitated a public exposure of a simmering concern about the quality of Treasury’s work.
Before the substantive issue which this column is about – whether there has been a deterioration in the economic advice given to the government – a paragraph about the budget leaks.
Read MoreInequality and Mental Health
It may be that higher levels of inequality have increased the incidence of poor mental wellbeing in the community. A recent book suggests a causal mechanism from one to the other.
International research shows that there is a socioeconomic status (or class) gradient, in which those with low SES experience higher morbidity from respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, ulcers, rheumatoid disorders, a number of cancers, psychiatric diseases, dementia and so on.
Read MoreHow to Reduce Accountability: Downgrade the Chief Archivist!
espite its manifesto promise to make the Chief Archivist an officer of Parliament, the government has not yet announced its decision. It is taking so long there must be a problem. Let’s guess an outcome if the officials have their way.
One of the major issues which face a democratic nation is the challenge of keeping its bureaucracy accountable and responsive to the public. Over the years a variety of arrangements have developed with this objective.
Read MoreShirley Smith: In Her Own Right
Shirley Smith would say that in her childhood she was known as the daughter of (later Sir) David Smith, then she was known as the wife of Bill Sutch and later as the mother of Helen Sutch. Throughout her life she struggled to be a person in her own right.
Read MoreWas it Really a Wellbeing Budget?
If the Government is serious about redirecting policy towards wellbeing, it is going to have to do a lot more than making the odd statement in the budget.
Read MoreNew Zealand’s Living Fossil
The Chatham Islands are a world we have left behind.
Read MorePlundering the Planet
Can we consume limited resources forever? Is economic growth just a Ponzi scheme in which we borrow from the future? Is economic growth as we know it coming to an end?
Read MoreFrustrations of an unreconstructed, unrepentant Keynesian
Two weeks out from the Budget, it's a good time to remember what is the means of economic management and what are the true ends
Read MoreWhat Do We Mean by Wellbeing?
The government has promised a ‘wellbeing budget’. No one seems to know what that means. We can set out some preliminary economic understandings.
Read MoreHubbard Bubble: Toil and Trouble
While Chris Lee’s “The Billion Dollar Bonfire: How Allan Hubbard and the Government Destroyed South Canterbury Finance” traces the rise and fall of the finance company, it also provides valuable insights into how the financial system works – or doesnt.
Read MoreToo Near a Third Rail?
Traditionally Capital Gains Tax (CGT) has been politically untouchable. What does the handling of the issue tell us about the government’s political skills?
Read MoreThe Cult of the Generic Manager
Are New Zealand managers good enough; are we relying too much upon them?
Read MoreDoesn't hate-speech need to include some hatred?
Israel Folau's warning to certain sinner is for him an act of love, not hate. So how important is intent when it comes to calling something 'hate speech'?
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