2003
Dr Don Brash is an economist and former Member of Parliament. He served as the Governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand from 1988 to 2002.
Regular readers of “elocal” will think I have a fixation about house prices. I’ve written on the subject twice already this year, most recently just two months ago. But several things have prompted me to write on the subject again. First, despite all …
A few weeks ago, the Government announced that as from 2022 teaching New Zealand history would be a mandatory part of the school curriculum, at both primary and secondary level. As somebody who was an historian before he was an economist, I was delighted…
Don Brash Opinion Piece Several months ago, it was abundantly clear that KiwiBuild was a complete failure. In the 2017 election campaign, the Labour Party’s biggest promise was to “deliver 100,000 quality, affordable houses for first home buyers over …
Don Brash Opinion Piece One of the issues almost guaranteed to provoke a strong reaction at many a social gathering in New Zealand is any suggestion that New Zealand should be exporting more bottled water. There have been noisy demonstrations in public,…
A few weeks ago, the New Zealand Herald carried an article by Dr Douglas Fairgray which seemed to argue that, when it comes to determining the price of houses, supply doesn’t matter. A few weeks ago, the New Zealand Herald carried an article by Dr Dougla…
Don Brash Opinion Piece Driving around Auckland the other day, I saw that one of the candidates for the Auckland mayoralty is promising to sack the board of Auckland Transport. He’s got my vote was my immediate reaction! Of course, I know that the pe…
Last year, there was a lively debate in New Zealand about what should, and on the other hand what should not, be banned. Last year, there was a lively debate in New Zealand about what should, and on the other hand what should not, be banned. This wa…
I have no difficulty understanding why many people are strongly in favour of a capital gains tax. They see a minority of New Zealanders enjoying the very good life, living in a luxurious home, going on international trips every year, driving a late model…
A few months ago, I wrote a column highlighting some of the serious things which are going on under our collective noses to provide, or in some cases, continue to provide special privileges to those New Zealanders who chance to have at least one Maori an…
Last month, I wrote about some common misconceptions about the profitability of the banks operating in New Zealand, and noted that the Big Four Aussie banks, while quite profitable compared with banks elsewhere in the world, are not wildly profitable in …
Every now and then, there’s a surge of concern, sometimes even anger, at the banks. They make too much money. Their profits go overseas. They no longer provide services in country towns. Their culture needs watching carefully by the regulators, lest …
Six months ago, I wrote a column about the five local referenda which defeated the attempt of five district councils to foist separate Maori wards on their districts. And about the open letter which Local Government New Zealand had written to the Govern…
In recent months, we have seen a rash of strikes – teachers and nurses in particular, with other sectors suggesting that they may strike also unless the people who work in those sectors get a substantial wage or salary increase. Of course, people say, t…
A couple of months back, I wrote a column about Phil Goff’s purported refusal to allow two Canadians to speak at an Auckland Council-owned venue (I say “purported” because, when challenged, Council lawyers eventually admitted that actually he had no powe…
A few weeks ago on a breakfast TV programme, I was provoked into quoting a recent assessment of the Key/English Government by Kerry McDonald, a former director of the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research, and chief executive or chairman of a number…
Late last year, five district councils – Western Bay of Plenty, Whakatane, Palmerston North, Manawatu and Kaikoura – voted to establish one or more Maori wards in their districts. The intention was that those on the Maori roll for Parliamentary election…