The New Zealand Initiative

In this episode, Eric Crampton talks to Nick Clark about New Zealand's long and troubled history with the Resource Management Act — and whether the Government's 744-page replacement really fixes it. They examine the missing property rights protections, the absence of robust cost-benefit analysis, and the fail-safes needed to ensure the new framework delivers better outcomes for New Zealanders.

In this episode, Oliver talks to retired Major General John Howard about escalating US–Iran tensions, what 'phase zero' military build-up signals, and the pathways from diplomacy to potential strikes. With New Zealand holding, as Howard notes, around 14 days of fuel reserves, they explain why disruption in the Strait of Hormuz matters, and why energy security and national resilience deserve far greater urgency.

In this episode, Oliver Hartwich speaks with retired Major General John Howard, whose 40-year military career included a senior executive role at the US Defense Intelligence Agency. Howard explains New Zealand is strategically underprepared for a more contested world, lacking clear national security and intelligence strategies, modern capability and sustained investment to protect a trading nation's interests.

In this episode, Michael Johnston speaks with Kaaryn Cater of MindWise Connection about sensitivity – a temperamental trait that makes some people more affected by their environment. They explore why open-plan classrooms can overwhelm highly sensitive children, how social cues and sensory stimuli shape learning, and practical strategies teachers and workplaces can use to reduce overload and better support highly sensitive people.

In this episode, Michael talks to demographer Marion Burkimsher about New Zealand's falling fertility rate and looming population decline. They explore whether immigration can fill the gap as birth rates drop, the psychological implications of ageing societies and what might actually help young people form families - from affordable housing to healthier relationships and realistic expectations about parenthood.

A deep dive into the US 180-day ultimatum pushing allies to sign rare earth mineral access deals. Conversation covers how mining approvals and overseas investment rules complicate access. They unpack problems seen in Australia’s agreement and how pressure forces geopolitical trade choices. Practical options for domestic mining reform and local benefits are also explored.

In this episode, Michael and Stephanie are joined by former Chief Justice of Australia Robert French to examine academic freedom and freedom of expression in universities. French reflects on the model code he developed in 2019 for Australian universities and explains why the real threat to free speech often lies in vague codes of conduct rather than controversial speakers. They discuss the difference between free speech and academic freedom, the limits universities can legitimately place on expression, and the case for institutional neutrality.

This concluding episode examines what it takes for housing reform to endure. Minister Chris Bishop reflects on his journey to Competitive Urban Land Markets (CLM) and why housing affordability is best understood as a problem of land supply. The conversation situates Bishop within a decade-long reform arc spanning governments and parties. Building on earlier work under Bill English and Phil Twyford, he discusses how CLM has been socialised within National and translated into the Going for Housing Growth agenda. A central theme is the generational nature of the housing challenge. Bishop observes that the divide on housing is less partisan than generational, and frames the current term as a narrow window in which to act: if progress slows, gravity reasserts itself. Part 3 also explores durability, examining why both local and central government struggle to stay the course when reform becomes politically uncomfortable. The discussion turns to the risk of relying on unusually capable ministers to champion reform, and the need for rule-based systems that hold course regardless of whoever office. Bishop frames his new ministry as an attempt to pull the reform arc into a single institutional locus, a partial answer to the challenge of maintaining coherence across political cycles. The series closes with CLM no longer being a question of whether it offers the right diagnosis, but whether New Zealand is willing to embed that diagnosis deeply enough, as an explicit goal of the planning system, in law, and supported by institutions and incentives, for it to survive its own champions. Bishop's answer is the roadrunner: keep running and leave the road on fire behind, long enough to make it irreversible. Related links: Read 'The housing theory of everything' here: https://lawliberty.org/the-many-deaths-of-liberalism/?mc_cid=c7e3361d2d&mc_eid=f6d1114f29 Listen to part 1 of this series, 'Clarity Emerging from the Mists', here:https://www.nzinitiative.org.nz/reports-and-media/podcasts/podcast-housing-affordability-nz-at-the-global-policy-frontier-part-1-clarity-emerging-from-the-mists/ Listen to part 2 of this series, ‘From Heresy to Reform’ (with Phil Twyford), here: https://www.nzinitiative.org.nz/reports-and-media/podcasts/podcast-housing-affordability-nz-at-the-global-policy-frontier-part-2-from-heresy-to-reform/

In this episode, Oliver and Michael reflect on a packed 2025 that brought major policy wins in education, housing, and regulation, while looking ahead to the bigger picture challenges shaping 2026. They cover everything from the Initiative’s Dutch delegation and Prof Barbara Oakley’s visit, to the dramatic early gains in literacy and numeracy under Minister Erica Stanford, the new Resource Management Act, and the work ahead on AI, demographic change, and political polarisation.

In this episode, Oliver, Nick and Bryce talk about the Fast Track Approvals Amendment Bill, focusing on the use of Henry VIII clauses that allow ministers to amend legislation without full parliamentary scrutiny. The discussion examines why these powers have typically been used only in genuine emergencies, how their application in planning reform raises constitutional questions, and why the Initiative recommends clearer limits and stronger sunset provisions to protect democratic processes.