Opinion & Commentary
Opinion and Commentary contains media articles written by CIS researchers.
Categories
Kiwis put ETS on the shelf
New Zealand’s realistic policy approach, combined with its almost defunct carbon market, should be a real wake-up call for Australia to reconsider its ill-fated Carbon Tax Scheme.... Read More
A British pawn in Europe's game
Perhaps it is dawning on Cameron that he had been moved like a pawn on a chessboard by his continental friends. His insistence to act in Britain’s national interest mainly served to promote the interests...... Read More
Germany's blissful euro ignorance
It is only a matter of time until reality will catch up with the Germans at some stage. But don’t wake them up just yet. They won’t have their Christmas holidays spoilt just because some countries...... Read More
Budget heat in a revenue drought
Governments in other countries are in deeper fiscal distress than ours, but governments at the federal and state levels in Australia are struggling with the consequences of a revenue drought after years...... Read More
Who needs four uni degrees or even one for that matter?
Most jobs don't require university degrees. A key purpose of education is to give students a chance to signal their aptitude and diligence, rather to acquire knowledge for later vocational use. Fostering...... Read More
Merkozy's palliative care pact
The euro won’t survive a day longer just because of the political marriage of the German chancellor and the French president. But their botched crisis management indeed makes the time until its eventual...... Read More
No fuel like an old fuel: Germany's nuclear reaction provides a win for coal
Fear and green populism were bad counsellors indeed when Germany drew the wrong lessons from the Fukushima accident.... Read More
NT intervention: action better than apathy
It is hypocritical that the very same people who lament the gross violation of Aboriginal rights carried out under the intervention can remain so silent about the injustice that has seen so many remote...... Read More
Land of the long white cloud faces bad weather
SINCE 2008, New Zealand has been led by former investment banker John Key's National Party. The party campaigned on growing New Zealand's economy and encouraging individual enterprise. However, three years...... Read More
Business will cop super fall-out
THE Federal Government has introduced legislation to lift the superannuation guarantee to 12 per cent by July, 2019. About 8.4 million Australians will have their superannuation savings boosted, it claims,...... Read More
Kiwis facing a critical choice
New Zealand must overcome challenging economic conditions, writes Luke Malpass... Read More
Whether public or private, our schools deserve a fair go
School choice means different things to different people. In essence, it refers to the principle that parents should have the right and the means to choose their child’s school, and that this choice...... Read More
Europe's hidden doomsday machine
What Europe is still discussing and Germany is vehemently resisting – the transformation into a fiscal liability union – has long been achieved through the Target backdoor. Brace yourself for the day...... Read More
Countdown to a US debt debacle
It says something about the depths of Europe’s economic malaise that America’s economic managers are attending international meetings and lecturing others about the need to get their fiscal houses...... Read More
Avoiding conflict but quietly waving flag
Southeast Asian governments will welcome increased US involvement in the region.... Read More
Spending Spree wasted decade of prosperity
NZ’s decade long spending binge was prosperity wasted.... Read More
Italy defaults on debt and sends lenders broke? So be it
The federal government will need to cut spending to ensure a surplus in 2012-13.... Read More
Will Mr Nobody crash Europe?
When Germany’s political Boxing Day comes on December 17, there could be some hidden surprises among the presents which may spoil a few politicians’ Christmas breaks. A hitherto obscure German backbencher...... Read More
Liberals Drop Ball in Super Free-For-All
Lifting superannuation to 12% is wrong.... Read More
Europe's social failure
Capital markets are not loquacious storytellers. They condense the world into simple numbers. For this reason, the surge in Greek, Italian and Spanish bond yields could be mistaken for a mere technicality,...... Read More
