Show Notes
In this episode, Oliver talks with Eric about Budget 2026, which brings the forecast surplus forward a year but rests on a series of lucky breaks, from oil prices falling to fiscal discipline surviving the election and coalition negotiations.
They weigh what is driving spending well above 2019 levels, the case for superannuation reform, council incentives to go for growth, the shrinking public service, and why Treasury's tobacco and alcohol excise forecasts keep going wrong.
More from The New Zealand Initiative
In this episode, Eric talks to Nick Clark and Paul Melville about the illustrative national policy direction, the draft document that will put the detail into the two acts replacing the Resource Management Act. They go through what the draft gets right, including a presumption that people can use their land without unnecessary constraints, and where it falls short, from the exceptions that could undercut that presumption to the detail pushed down again into standards yet to be written.
In this episode, Oliver talks with Major General (Ret) John Howard about the White House reversing its own sanctions to import Russian diesel and pressuring Ukraine to replace its president, even as Russia continues striking Ukrainian energy infrastructure. They discuss the protests and debt pressure destabilising France, and what a weakening Europe would mean for New Zealand's trade and energy. They end by questioning why national security and defence policy have been missing from the election campaign.
Here is a full episode of Free to Disagree, our new weekly show with Oliver Hartwich and Damien Grant.
Here is a full episode of Free to Disagree, our new weekly show with Oliver Hartwich and Damien Grant.
In this episode, Dr Eric Crampton talks to Nick Clark and new senior fellow Paul Melville about the two new acts replacing the Resource Management Act and what the new system gets right, including standardised zoning and a new Urban Land Market Officer. They also weigh up how much has been left for ministers to decide later, and where the acts could still end up in court.