The New Zealand Initiative

In this episode, Eric and Michael discuss Australia's proposed law to ban social media for under-16s, examining how age verification would likely require government ID and create serious privacy risks as platforms would need to store this sensitive data. While acknowledging concerns about social media's impact on young people, they argue the Australian approach could enable government surveillance, compromise online anonymity, and create technical challenges that would either be easily circumvented or impose heavy costs on legitimate users.

In this episode, Eric talks to Dr Dylan Mordaunt, a clinician and visiting fellow at Victoria University, about healthcare policy and regulation in New Zealand, sparked by a recent Niskanen Centre report highlighting how supply constraints affect healthcare delivery. They explore various regulatory barriers affecting medical practitioners, scope of practice limitations, and access to medicines, while discussing how to balance public safety with increasing healthcare accessibility and capacity. Read the Niskansen report here: https://www.niskanencenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Health-care-abundance-FINAL-3.pdf https://www.nzinitiative.org.nz

In this episode, marking the eve of the Berlin Wall's anniversary, New Zealand filmmaker Tony Forster joins Oliver to share his powerful experience of witnessing its fall on November 9, 1989. He reflects on the stark contrasts between East and West Berlin at that time and how this pivotal moment reshaped his personal outlook, deepening his belief in social responsibility and the importance of emotional expression. To watch Tony Forster's documentary please visit: https://vimeo.com/video/187622046 The password to view the video is: AABDec2016

In this episode, Michael and James talk to Oxford theologian Nigel Biggar as he discusses his experiences with academic cancel culture and argues that while the British Empire had significant flaws, it also helped spread important liberal values and institutions throughout the world. The conversation then delves into how modern universities are struggling with free speech and academic discourse, suggesting that a combination of institutional cowardice, loss of religious frameworks, and generational disconnection from historical threats to democracy has led to current campus tensions around controversial topics.

In this episode, Michael talks to Stephanie Martin about the concerning state of academic freedom policies being developed by New Zealand universities. They examine how several universities' draft policies might actually restrict rather than protect academic freedom, with particular attention to the University of Auckland's Senate recently rejecting their proposed policy, whilst highlighting the need for better legislative guidance and cultural change to protect open discourse in academia.

In this episode, Dr Eric Crampton and Prof Steven Hamilton explore why New Zealand and Australia's COVID responses shared similar successes and failures despite their different paths. Their conversation draws from Hamilton's new book "Australia's Pandemic Exceptionalism: How we crushed the curve but lost the race," examining how both countries excelled at initial elimination and wage subsidies but stumbled with testing regulations and vaccine procurement, ultimately revealing important lessons about institutional capacity and adaptable policy responses for future pandemics.

In this episode, Oliver and Nick talk to Oliver Wittke, former mayor of Gelsenkirchen. They discuss a significant local government reform in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, that could offer valuable insights for New Zealand's current system. The German state transitioned from a model similar to New Zealand's current setup - with separate mayor and chief executive roles - to a unified, directly elected mayoral position with executive powers, a change that has been widely regarded as successful and could inform potential reforms in New Zealand's local government structure.

In this episode, Oliver talks to Roger and Richard Ekins. They discuss concerns about judicial overreach by New Zealand's Supreme Court, as outlined Roger's latest research report for the New Zealand Initiative. They argue that the court is effectively making law rather than interpreting it, and they propose several legislative measures to reassert parliamentary authority and maintain the proper constitutional balance between Parliament and the courts.

In this episode, Michael talks to Rachel Cooper, a Resource Teacher for Learning and Behaviour, about the complex challenges facing New Zealand's education system. The conversation covers a wide range of interconnected issues, from classroom behaviour and learning difficulties to teacher training, school governance, and the impact of societal changes on education, while also exploring potential solutions to improve the quality of education and support for students.

In this episode, Michael talks to James about his recent report about the state of academic freedom in New Zealand universities, highlighting concerns about censorship, institutional bias, and self-censorship among academics. Their conversation explores the causes of these issues, including commercialisation of universities and the influence of progressive politics, and proposes recommendations such as new legislation, annual audits, and better training for administrators to protect and strengthen academic freedom. To read James' report, "Unpopular Opinons: Academic Freedom in New Zealand", visit: https://www.nzinitiative.org.nz/unpopular-opinions-academic-freedom-in-new-zealand/