Dr Oliver Hartwich

Notes from New Zealand

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February 2021

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Insights

Transparency, please

26 February 2021

An organisation confident in its recommendations should not fear transparency about its modelling.

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Newsroom

Building for an ageing population

23 February 2021

These sober findings put debates around New Zealand’s housing crisis into a different perspective.

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Insights

Mastering the art of Democracy

19 February 2021

Mastering ‘Democracy’ was easier than I had thought.

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The New Zealand Herald

Don’t know much about history?

16 February 2021

New Zealand students deserve a better understanding of history, including their own but not limited to it.

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Insights

The government’s housing toolbox

12 February 2021

We can only hope that the replacement of the RMA will give the government new tools for its housing toolbox.

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Newsroom

EU vaccines disaster shreds Commission’s credibility

9 February 2021

The EU’s vaccination procurement has been an unmitigated disaster.

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Other publications

The Tacitus temptation

6 February 2021

Anyone wishing for an anti-Trump, an anti-Johnson or an anti-Bolsonaro could not dream up a more impressive figure like Jacinda Ardern.

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Insights

Simulation of life

5 February 2021

After many attempts at ‘Democracy’, I am happy to cut our political leaders some slack.

About me

Oliver Hartwich

I run The New Zealand Initiative, a Wellington think tank that argues for free markets, limited government and institutions that work. I grew up in Germany's Ruhrgebiet and worked in London and Sydney before moving to New Zealand in 2012. This site collects two decades of my columns, reports, speeches and interviews, with the occasional satire.

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Latest video

All TV appearances · Playlist on YouTube

Latest audio

  • Newstalk ZB · 9 November 2026 · 8 min

    What the 2026 election shows about MMP

    0:00
  • Free to Disagree · 6 November 2026 · 56 min

    Why hasn’t New Zealand warmed to its prime minister?

    0:00
  • Initiative podcast · 5 November 2026 · 32 min

    Why an ageing New Zealand is an opportunity, not a burden

    0:00

All interviews and podcasts

My books

Cover of The Martian Audit

The Martian Audit (2026)

Two Martian auditors land in the Wairarapa and are promptly fined for parking without consent. A satirical novella, free to download as PDF or EPUB.

Cover of In the Meantime

In the Meantime (2026)

Investing in a more tribal, less rational world. Written for the Da Vinci Lecture at the Portfolio Construction Forum. Free to read online.

Cover of Leonardo's Legacy

Leonardo's Legacy (2025)

Why investment professionals must become civilisational stewards. Written for the first Da Vinci Lecture at the Portfolio Construction Forum. Free to read online.

Free to Disagree

Free to Disagree podcast logo, with Damien Grant and Oliver Hartwich
Weekly podcast with Damien Grant

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