News
Early Bird news wrap & Dawn Chorus Live invite
3+ hour, 23+ min ago (78+ words) Early Bird news wrap & Dawn Chorus Live invite'The K'k' by Bernard Hickey Early Bird news wrap & Dawn Chorus Live invite A look at how the fuel inflation spike is set to combine with higher mortgage rates and a lower New…...
A Hoon on The Reality of Everything Symposium, interconnected crises & Public Health
2+ week, 17+ hour ago (347+ words) This week I hosted a "Hoon" on Substack Live previewing The Reality of Everything symposium to be held at Victoria University of Wellington on June 26, which will examine the interconnected crises of climate change, energy, water & food constraints, economic instability…...
Economic 'green shoots' without taste or protein
1+ mon, 23+ hour ago (288+ words) The jobs-heavy services sector showed more expansion overall in January, BusinessNZ-BNZ's PSI survey showed yesterday, but at a slower rate with fewer jobs and lower growth in new orders. Retail sales through debit and credit cards also fell again in…...
Dawn Chorus: Willis eyes bank profit levy
1+ mon, 5+ day ago (72+ words) Willis refers to Australian bank levy in disclosing IRD work on tax settings for big four Australian banks; Debate rages on whether 'Investment Boost' is working; Migrant exploitation detail emerges The K'k' by Bernard Hickey Dawn Chorus: Willis eyes bank…...
'The rising tide isn't lifting those without boats"
1+ mon, 6+ day ago (1151+ words) I spoke with Salvation Army Social Policy & Parliamentary Unit Director Bonnie Robinson yesterday about the unit's State of the Nation 2026 report, which showed a range of indicators of poverty worsening through 2024 and 2025. She challenged the Government to adopt specific policies…...
What insurance retreat means for home-owners
1+ mon, 1+ week ago (280+ words) In recent weeks we've seen AA Insurance publicly acknowledge it has stopped writing new home insurance policies in Westport, Woodend in North Canterbury and in Blenheim to avoid taking on more flood and quake risk in those towns. The NZ…...
When climate change itself increases living costs
1+ mon, 2+ week ago (194+ words) Briefly in Aotearoa's political economy on Wednesday, February 4: The Sidebar: That focus on competition is despite Treasury and other official advice that the effects of climate change are the key drivers, along with reinsurance costs driven by markets overseas. News…...