Articles by Mykeljon Winckel

By any modern political measure, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s announcement that the India–New Zealand Free Trade Agreement is a “landmark moment” ticks every box of good optics. There are the celebratory adjectives, the breathless timelines, the diplomatic phone calls, and the familiar promise that growth, jobs, and prosperity are just around the corner. But optics are not outcomes. And for New Zealanders who have lived through three…

After a difficult 2025 marked by recession and slow activity, New Zealand’s economy is showing broad signs of stabilisation and budding recovery — not just in isolated sectors, but across the board, according to KiwiBank’s latest economic outlook. 📉 · KiwiBank Economic Commentary — 13 November 2025 · Interest Rates Have Reached Supportive Levels · Economists at KiwiBank highlight that interest rates are now much lower than they were this…

With the release of its new National Security Strategy (NSS), the United States — the world’s most powerful nation — has officially abandoned the global-hegemony doctrine that defined the post-Cold War order. · For the first time since 1945, Washington is no longer claiming the mantle of global policeman, architect of the “rules-based international order,” or moral crusader for universal liberal democracy. Instead, the U.S. has accepted —…

For years, governments insisted they were “following the science.” But science does not stand still, and it certainly does not bow to political pressure. Now, as new studies challenge the assumptions that drove the global COVID-19 response, the world is being forced to confront an uncomfortable truth: many of the policies that reshaped economies, societies, and democracies were based on data that is no longer standing up to scrutiny. What was…

At long last, a government has acknowledged what households have been screaming for years: council rates are out of control, and ordinary New Zealanders are paying the price. The National Government’s announcement of a maximum 4% annual rates cap is more than a policy change — it is a badly needed circuit-breaker for a country that has become unaffordable, uncompetitive, and, for many families, simply unlivable. This move, paired with the…

For years, residents living near the Tutaenui Stream have warned the Auckland Council of a growing and entirely preventable problem: a choked, neglected waterway that has become a repeat flooding hazard. The solution is neither complex nor controversial — the stream simply needs proper clearing and ongoing maintenance. Contractors themselves have confirmed it. A similar clearance in 2003 kept the area safe for eight years. Yet today, instead of…

New Zealand today stands in the jaws of a recession deeper and more structural than anything we have seen in decades. Businesses are folding. Workers are fleeing. Families are giving up hope. And yet, somehow, among all the noise, one catastrophic act of economic vandalism continues to escape the national reckoning it deserves: The deliberate destruction of New Zealand’s only oil refinery at Marsden Point. · Not downgraded. Not…

Across Auckland, homeowners are opening their insurance renewal letters only to find shocking premium increases — not because their properties have suddenly sunk, but because a bureaucratic map now says they sit on a “flood plain.” It’s a growing problem created not by nature, but by policy. The latest victim is long-time Pukekohe resident Dave Mills, whose property on Buckland Road has been bone-dry for over 30 years — yet has now been…

Ah, the age-old question: are you “Just like your Mother?” Brace yourselves, dear readers, for a whimsical journey through the marvelous world of motherhood, where one size certainly does not fit all, and the role of Mom evolves faster than a toddler’s mood swings. · As Mother’s Day graces us with its presence this month, let’s take a moment to marvel at the wonders of ‘Mums’ worldwide and delve into some eye-opening global motherhood…

Interview with Geoff Neal MJ: Welcome back, we’re returning with Geoff Neal, who has been very, very insightful in creating these most incredible websites and transparency for the Government at Large. Now I’ll say at large because we have got a very large Government and they need to be more transparent about everything, even when they do say they are the most transparent government we’ve ever had. So Geoff, it’s really nice to have you back…