When New Zealand’s former Minister of Finance Dr Michael Cullen announced the re-nationalisation of KiwiRail last year, Rail’s alleged ‘failure’ was presented as an example of ‘the failed policies of the past.’ The story was that selfish foreign interests had bought our rail system, stripped it off its assets, and run it down – leaving the government to pick up the pieces.

Except for a droll few, most people wouldn’t argue the virtues and vices of class actions at Friday night drinks. But, the ‘rising tide of shareholder class actions’ the AFR reported this week should embolden at least one brave soul to broach the topic.

This week, the OECD released its annual Education At A Glance report which provides country comparisons of spending, participation, completion, performance and various other aspects of education.