Latest news with #NewZealandInitiative
Scoop
28-05-2025
- Business
- Scoop
A Fast-Track To Stronger Grocery Competition
Wellington (Thursday, 29 May 2025) – The government has viewed stronger retail grocery competition as a national priority. But zoning, consenting, and overseas investment approval processes make new entry far too difficult. The New Zealand Initiative today showed how to open New Zealand's markets to more competition. It released drafting instructions for a Fast-track Supermarket Entry and Expansion Omnibus Bill, which would rapidly approve retail grocery developments at scale and cut through complex barriers that are preventing new supermarket chains from entering the New Zealand market. The proposed Fast-Track pathway would: Streamline rezoning, consenting and investment clearance processes for a set of new stores and associated warehouses as a package, providing decisions within months; Override obstructive planning regulations; Open New Zealand's grocery sector to the real possibility of a new competitor; Disappear when resource management reform has made the pathway irrelevant. Proposal author Dr Benno Blaschke said, 'New Zealand has a lot of fast-track regimes, but none of them can give a single, timely decision for complex projects across multiple councils. Our process achieves this and has been crafted for policy officials and legislative drafters to pick up and run with.' Dr Blaschke explains, "Fixing the rules of the game allows the competitive process to unfold. If there are super-profits in grocery retail, opening the market lets new entrants compete for them while providing better service to consumers.' The Initiative's Chief Economist Dr Eric Crampton added, 'The underlying problem has always been regulatory structures that make new entry practically impossible. Fixing that real problem makes far more sense than break-ups that risk increasing prices for consumers.' The New Zealand Initiative is supported by businesses in its membership, including two supermarket chains. Our proposal would explicitly prevent existing major supermarket chains from using this fast-track process for at least five years, reserving the pathway for new entrants and smaller competitors before enabling existing chains to engage in more strenuous head-to-head competition. Dr Benno Blaschke and Dr Eric Crampton explore this research note in the latest New Zealand Initiative podcast. Listen here.
National Business Review
24-05-2025
- Politics
- National Business Review
Defending democracy: First define your target
The state of democracy in the West remains a hot topic. Undoubtedly, the election of President Donald Trump in the United States and rising support for conservative nationalist parties in Europe have upset many. But the malaise goes much deeper. The other end of the political spectrum also rallies around causes that undermine the liberal democratic tradition. Accusations of authoritarian tendencies resemble a mirror game, with both sides being guilty of each other's actions. Publishers have responded with volumes on everything from the loss of trust and tolerance to polarisation and outright rejection. Even the judicial system is under attack. The Chief Justice, Dame Helen Winkelmann, raised the alarm against critics. Some supported her, implying these were personal attacks. Retired District Court Judge David Harvey. Retired Judge David Harvey has brought legal commentary and dispute to the wider public through his columns and blogs. He defends the rights of critics who oppose the judiciary's introduction of elements such as tikanga into the law. 'Criticism of a decision is quite a distance from personal criticism of a judge. It is perfectly legitimate for a judicial decision to be critiqued,' Harvey wrote. Personal attacks To clarify, he names those critics, who were not identified in one article on personal attacks. They will be familiar to NBR subscribers. Roger Partridge, chairman and co-founder of the New Zealand Initiative; Auckland lawyer Gary Judd KC; and Auckland barrister Warren Pyke. These debates are likely to be more common. Harvey has touched a nerve with his views that rulings from the bench, compared with earlier decades, are less in touch with public opinion. The term 'judicial activism' is used to describe how the courts, once upholders of liberal establishment values, have evolved into enforcers of concepts such as 'social justice' and 'human rights'. In other words, majoritarian democracies were being overruled by unelected graduates of law schools that taught radical ideas on the environment, identity politics, and human rights. When former Otago University law professor James Allan, a Canadian, first aired these concerns in Democracy in Decline (2014), he was considered a fringe conservative. Now, they are a core belief in efforts to redefine democratic principles as those made in Parliament, not in the courts. Sir Geoffrey Palmer and Sir Kenneth Keith. Two leading jurists, Sir Geoffrey Palmer and Sir Kenneth Keith, both had books published this year espousing what Allan, now at the University of Queensland, would consider a constitutional coup to overthrow parliamentary sovereignty. The pushback on the 'judicialisation of politics' has been expressed at the local level by an Otago graduate, Natasha Hamilton-Hart, who is director of the NZ Asia Institute at the University of Auckland. She says it's been a 30-year mission to bring back parliamentary control and accountability to tribunals, courts and quasi-judicial panels of experts. Clear voice One clear voice on these issues is Lord Jonathan Sumption, a former Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom and a non-permanent judge of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal, from which he resigned last year. In his pre-legal career, Sumption was a medieval historian (his multi-volume history of the 100 Years' War is still in progress after starting in 1990). In the 1970s, before joining the Supreme Court, he was a founder with Margaret Thatcher of the Centre for Policy Studies, the think tank that propounded the neoliberalism that once dominated Western politics. His latest book, The Challenges of Democracy: And the Rule of Law, is a collection of lectures. Its remarkable feature, and one that explodes the myth of New Zealand's exceptionality, is that it could easily be just about this country. The insights remove much of the 'noise' about political discourse, and instead focus on how a democracy functions, and ways to protect it. The threats are real enough. The Economist Intelligence Unit's Democracy Index is at its lowest in decades. One reason is the appeal of authoritarianism, which is reflected in what Sumption calls the moral absolutism of the 'new Roundheads' in the universities, public service and the media. Several reasons He then addresses the causes of disillusionment with democracy. One is the role of representation, which is less about the quality of politicians than that they become part of a professional class. They then become less truly representative of their electors. 'Success in government requires high levels of intelligence, judgment and application. These qualities are uncommon, which means that democracies are in reality removable aristocracies of knowledge.' This elitism is never popular and is a scourge of democratic politics. A second problem is the unrealistically high expectations of voters. Increasingly, they expect the state to solve every problem. While it can do many more things than in the past, it can't do everything. 'Governments can create the conditions for prosperity and remove artificial barriers to prosperity, but they cannot create prosperity.' Worse, politicians are expected to promise the undeliverable and are then damned for failing to deliver it. Lord Jonathan Sumption. 'The result is to undermine the trust in institutions that is indispensable in any state not founded on mere force,' Sumption continues. In the UK, this applies to the National Health Service, the housing shortage and controlling crime. Ditto for New Zealand. Major problems A third reason for the declining appeal of democracies is their inability to tackle major problems, precisely because they are democracies. Here, Sumption cites perennially high house prices due to voters favouring planning restrictions and environmental regulation. Democracies also face the inability to finance welfare payments such as pensions when populations are ageing and the proportion of taxpayers to pay for them is decreasing. 'Any solution to the problem will be electorally unpopular, especially among older voters who are assiduous voters …' Climate change is yet another insolvable problem. 'Dealing with climate change will almost certainly involve reducing consumption, which will be hard to sell in a democracy.' Sumption then adds: 'The electoral kickback has already begun.' None of this is news to New Zealanders; nor are other issues such as student loan repayments, immigration restrictions, racial tensions, transgender rights, or foreign affairs. 'Democracy has a natural tendency to create interest groups for whom the preservation of their current advantages or the acquisition of new ones are the dominant factors in their political choices.' Main threats The main threats to democracy are economic insecurity, fear and intolerance. Sumption rejects inequality as inhibiting economic progress. In his think-tank years, Sumption co-authored Equality (1979) with Thatcher's economic minister, Sir Keith Joseph, and hasn't changed his mind that 'tax the rich' policies reduce capitalism's growth dynamics and therefore limit income-generation. While extremes can be socially disruptive, they are more likely when economic growth falters. Fear arises when people think an authoritarian regime offers more security. Sumption, as an appeal court judge in Hong Kong, witnessed how easily democratic norms can be undermined without criminal or illegal conduct. He cites Venezuela and Hungary as other examples where determined groups have harassed potential opponents, seized control of the media, exploited constitutional gaps, and run roughshod over political convention. Sumption also suggests complacency and risk-aversion are underlying contributors to fear. Demands that the state protects against all risks inherent in life are more likely to encourage despotic power. 'If we hold governments responsible for everything that goes wrong, they will take away our autonomy so that nothing can go wrong.' Sumption provides insights on the handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, elements of which are still being felt today. Alexis de Tocqueville warned against too much state power. He cites the warning of French political scientist Alexis de Tocqueville from two centuries ago of allowing security as the price of coercive state: 'Such a power … stupefies a people until each nation is reduced to nothing better than a flock of timid and industrious animals, of which the government is the shepherd.' Deliberate campaigns Finally, Sumption discusses intolerance, or polarisation. He calls out deliberate campaigns of suppression against politically unfashionable or 'incorrect' opinions, attempts to impose a new vocabulary that favours the campaigners, and generally the 'narrowing of our intellectual world'. This dive into the cultural wars reminds us why the lawyer Philip Crump chose religious martyr Thomas Cranmer as a pseudonym before his identity was outed after a series of columns that eviscerated the Labour Government's Three Waters. Direct action, to Sumption, is an invitation to authoritarian government, because it implicitly rejects the diversity of opinion. 'Those who engage in direct action instinctively feel … the end justifies the means, but they rarely confront the implications of their acts.' The essence of democracy is not consensus, but a common respect for a way to resolve differences. 'The task of a political community is to accommodate them so that we can live together in peace without systematic coercion.' This kind of language, which permeates all the lectures, is a refreshing alternative to the many suggestions of replacing the existing system. Although Aristotle warned that political classes endangered democracy, and many like a system that gets things done, Sumption comes down on the side of leaving decisions to those engaged in compromise and mediation. Even so, his conclusion is pessimistic. He expects the democracy that has existed over the past 200 years will eventually succumb to the human instincts for security, the decline of political tolerance and the rise of moral absolutism. The Challenges of Democracy: And the Rule of Law, by Jonathan Sumption (Profile Books) Nevil Gibson is a former editor-at-large for NBR. He has contributed film and book reviews to various publications. This is supplied content and not commissioned or paid for by NBR.
NZ Herald
14-05-2025
- Business
- NZ Herald
Budget 2025: Lock-out of civil society groups hinders transparency
Only journalists and financial analysts are allowed under the new lock-up rules. Photo / Mark Mitchell Opinion by Dr Eric Crampton Dr Eric Crampton is Chief Economist with the New Zealand Initiative. THREE KEY FACTS Lock-ups before Budgets are valuable. They result in more-informed post-Budget commentary and sharper questions for ministers. The rules changed for this year's Budget, locking out civil society organisations like the Council of Trade Unions (CTU) and Business New Zealand. It makes the current Government less transparent and
NZ Herald
29-04-2025
- Politics
- NZ Herald
Letters: Free public transport would help reduce congestion; waterfront stadium won't go away because it makes sense
Charging not the answer Nick Clark of the New Zealand Initiative, a think tank that needs to look a lot harder at its own thinking, is suggesting that congestion charging is a solution to traffic woes. He uses examples to show how well it is working, but it is, quite frankly, like comparing apples with lemons, Auckland being definitely in the lemon category. The big winners he talks about, Singapore and Stockholm, have extensive metro systems and/or fast overground train networks, not to mention way more compact city centres with the vast majority of housing in apartment complexes. And to suggest that we could compensate Community Services Card holders with a 'congestion dividend' is just so much unworkable nonsense. Clark could do us a favour by advocating more and cheaper, even free perhaps, public transport first. A way more equitable and useful congestion dividend! Neil Andeson, Algies Bay. Pope's commitment to Gaza Many pages of tribute to Pope Francis have graced the pages of New Zealand's and other countries' media. Rightly, his compassion and his concern for the marginalised has been noted. 'He was a Pope among the people,' the Herald on Sunday correctly announces. Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, in his funeral homily, described, but without specific details, how the Pope, 'faced with the raging wars of recent years ... incessantly raised his voice imploring peace'. Given this emphasis in his ministry, why did so few journalists cover the Pope's almost daily telephone calls since October 2023 to the only Catholic church in Gaza – a considerable commitment – and his call for a ceasefire in Gaza in his very last speech? Elizabeth Eastmond, Waiheke. Leaky Homes 2.0 Given that the National Party minister Paul Beck is going to introduce a bill that will allow house-building tradies to sign off on their own work, and since politicians are fond of giving legislation they are promoting catchy names, can I suggest this bill be called either 'Leaky Homes 2.0' or 'The Cowboys' Charter'. John Capener, Kawerau. Listen to sports journos It seems the only voices of reason in the Auckland stadium debate are those of sports journalists. As Paul Lewis (April 28) pointed out in his column on a possible stadium located on Wynyard Point, there is no sense coming out of the city's politicians or bureaucrats. Sports journalists experience a lot of stadiums around the world, and I don't recall any of them thinking a revamped Eden Park is the best option for the city. But a spectacularly designed rectangular stadium at Wynyard Point could be just the business. To envision what it would look like, take a look at an aerial photo of the new Everton Stadium. Very little imagination is required to see it transplanted from Liverpool's waterfront to ours. Tony Waring, Grey Lynn. Waterfront site best Location, location, location. From Trevor Mallard's proposal ahead of the 2011 Rugby World Cup to today's stadium debate, the reason that a waterfront stadium keeps rearing its head is because it is clearly the best site for a main Auckland stadium. Paul Lewis' article in Monday's paper indicates that Auckland Council may not have come to its decision regarding the main Auckland stadium with clean hands. Rather, Eke Panuku intends to use the area for apartment development. Perhaps the only way to regain public trust is for the council to insulate a stadium decision from any competing financial interests and to set up an independent review body. Peter Jansen, Mission Bay. War on the horizon America is going to have to have a war soon. This is just a fact. American debt soon will be 125% of GDP. A trade war with everyone, China in particular, will exacerbate the economic problems which have the potential to be very severe. What better way to reverse a slump than contrive an excuse for a war. It creates production, employment and stimulates the economy. The only question is with who. I wonder who it will be, and whose side I will be on? Paul Cheshire, Maraetai. What's with rising rents? I'm confused. The Government promised that by making life easier for landlords, including allowing interest tax deductibility, rents would come down. Yet the Herald (April 19) reports that rents increased 3.7% for the 12 months to March 31. Or is it that landlords will charge whatever the market will bear? Richard Gerard, Whangateau.
Scoop
23-04-2025
- Business
- Scoop
The New Zealand Initiative Supports Industry-Led Training Reforms, Calls For School Pathway Changes
Press Release – The New Zealand Initiative The Government's industry-led reforms set a strong foundation. Complementing them with improved school-level pathways would create a comprehensive solution to New Zealand's skills challenges. The New Zealand Initiative strongly supports the Government's move to give industries more control over apprenticeships and training. 'Minister Simmonds' announcement today addresses a key issue in our vocational education system,' says Dr Michael Johnston, Senior Fellow at The New Zealand Initiative. 'The shift from Te Pūkenga's centralised approach to industry-led training through Industry Skills Boards is a positive step forward.' 'The creation of these boards to set training standards will help ensure apprentices develop skills that are directly relevant to their workplaces. This connection between training and workplace requirements is vital for both learners and employers,' Johnston said. However, the Initiative calls for the Government to also establish clearer pathways from secondary schools into industry training. 'While these industry-level changes are important, our research shows that the pathway problem begins earlier. Too few school leavers consider apprenticeships because our secondary system doesn't provide clear vocational routes,' Johnston said. 'We recommend establishing a National Certificate of Industry Training as a parallel qualification to University Entrance. This would signal to students that vocational pathways offer equally valuable career opportunities.' Johnston added, 'The Government's industry-led reforms set a strong foundation. Complementing them with improved school-level pathways would create a comprehensive solution to New Zealand's skills challenges.'
