Articles in ‘Opinion’

If Part 1 described a New Zealand that was structurally sovereign — controlled capital flows, manageable external debt, production-led prosperity — Part 2 describes something subtler. Not conquest. Repositioning. The hollowing out did not begin in 1984. It began when the global monetary ground shifted — and New Zealand was manoeuvred, step by step, into a new financial architecture. Part I here... · Bretton Woods Ends — And the Anchor…

“While the government pats themselves on the back for the uptake of golden visas, it is important for us to recognise and understand what we have given away. For as little as $5m investment into the sharemarket or a managed fund, New Zealand has provided access to our public infrastructure and services while also providing far more advantageous tax settings than domestic residents enjoy. I would personally like to see an end to these visas. I…

Christopher Luxon had one job this week: explain to New Zealand where the country stands on the biggest geopolitical crisis in a generation. He blew it. Across a disastrous Monday, including a morning radio round on RNZ, an interview with Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking, and then a post-Cabinet press conference that may go down as one of the worst of his tenure, the Prime Minister fumbled, misspoke, contradicted himself, and ultimately left the…

Let Kids Be Kids is welcoming a quiet but significant change to national school policy templates after challenging the legal accuracy of SchoolDocs’ “Inclusive School Culture” policy. SchoolDocs – a private company supplying policies to 80-85% of New Zealand schools – has been writing into school policy that discrimination could be based on “sex, … sexual orientation or gender identity, … listed in the Human Rights Act 1993 (s 27)”. This…

The United States has carried out what is clearly an illegal bombing of Iran, a brutal theocracy with a long record of repression at home and proxy warfare abroad. So how should New Zealand respond? The Luxon-Peters Government put out a joint statement on Sunday that has been variously described as “balanced,” “careful,” and “a disgrace.” It is relatively positive towards the US actions and condemnatory towards Iran, but it doesn’t fully…

We have been indoctrinated with the lie that CO2 is bad for the environment and that we need to reduce our emissions down to zero if we want to save the planet from burning up. This is the biggest lie of all and if by some chance we were ever able to get the emissions down to zero that would be the day that life on earth would stop. · Achieving zero emissions of CO2 would be the equivalent of finding a Unicorn. · Impossible; particularly in…

Yesterday I found our Tamarillo tree leaves infested with microscopic mites who were busy sucking the life out of the plant. This morning I got up and found a massive invasion of ants had cleared up the mites. Problem solved. I never cease to marvel at the natural world. Trillions upon trillions of beings of all shapes, sizes and types integrated within an ecosystem of immeasurable beauty, diversity and balance, all following paths set by their…

For years, Jacinda Ardern was sold to the world as the face of “kindness.” A crisis leader. A moral compass in turbulent times. · But back home, the gloss has long since worn off. · Strip away the international applause and carefully curated documentaries, and what remains is a country carrying record debt, a fractured social fabric, and a lingering distrust of institutions that may take a generation to repair. · That is the legacy New Zealand…

Something has to give with New Zealand’s electricity market. And this week, the numbers arrived to prove it. The Big Four gentailers (Contact, Genesis, Meridian and Mercury) have just reported combined operating earnings of $1.86 billion for the six months to December 2025. That’s a jump of roughly 45% on the same period last year. Their combined dividend payouts rose 10% to $551 million. Meanwhile, the amount they actually invested in new…

Are voters actually up for a political circuit-breaker this year, or are we stuck with the same stale options again? If a disruptive force is desired, 2026 might finally be the year for the Opportunity Party to break through. Rebranded from “TOP” to simply “Opportunity,” the centrist party is now led by Qiulae Wong, a 37-year-old sustainability consultant who appears to have a better shot at getting into Parliament than any previous iteration…