Across the Western democracies, the political centre is under pressure. The populist right is rising, especially in Europe and the United States, while younger voters are showing renewed interest in socialism, or at least in much more interventionist economic policies. The result is not that the centre has vanished, but that it has lost much […]
The Hollowing of the Political Centre
The Hollowing of the Political Centre
27 Jun 2026 1 Comment
in liberalism, politics - New Zealand, politics - Australia, politics - USA, Marxist economics Tags: voter demographics
The mighty hurdle facing The Opportunity Party
27 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
Since 1996 no new party has entered Parliament without either a sitting or former MP leading it. The Conservative Party in 2014 came close to doing so, scoring about 4% of the party vote, but ultimately failed and never attained that level of support again.
The mighty hurdle facing The Opportunity Party
I’m a non-gestating parent!
26 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in discrimination, gender, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: political correctness, regressive left, sex discrimination
The NY Post reports: A woke new bill erases the terms “mother” and “father” from state child custody and parental laws — a gender-neutral rewriting that’s expected to spark a flood of similarly clunky legislation. “Mother” would be replaced with “gestating parent” while “father” becomes “non-gestating parent” or “parent” in family court along with in domestic and education law,…
I’m a non-gestating parent!
The tobacco black market in NZ in 2025
24 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of regulation, health economics, politics - New Zealand Tags: black markets, economics of smoking
I’ve been sent a copy of a report by FTI Consulting on the tobacco black market in NZ. It is referenced here by Retail NZ. It is 63 pages long and full of data. It is produced for the three main tobacco companies in NZ (not surprisingly they are against their product being stolen). Some…
The tobacco black market in NZ in 2025
In UK politics, is Andy Burnham an unelectable Jeremy Corbyn 2.0?
21 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in Marxist economics, politics Tags: British politics
I’ll treat this as a comparison of political positioning, leadership style, and electability rather than a slogan. I’ll check the current context first, since both Burnham and Corbyn’s roles/reputations can shift with recent Labour politics. Not really. Andy Burnham is better seen as a soft-left, regionalist, pragmatic Labour populist — not “Jeremy Corbyn 2.0.” The […]
In UK politics, is Andy Burnham an unelectable Jeremy Corbyn 2.0?
Inflation: the struggle for simplicity
20 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in inflation targeting, macroeconomics, monetary economics, politics - New Zealand
Why the Reserve Bank must distinguish monetary inflation from supply shocks
Inflation: the struggle for simplicity
150 laws to go
20 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of regulation, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights
Chris Bishop announced: More than 150 outdated and obsolete laws are likely to be repealed as part of the Government’s statutory spring clean, Attorney-General Chris Bishop says. The legislative cleanup is being run in stages led by the Parliamentary Counsel Office, alongside the Department of Internal Affairs for local Acts. To date, 152 outdated Acts…
150 laws to go
A Nordic Nightmare for AOC
19 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economic growth, economic history, labour economics, labour supply, macroeconomics, Marxist economics, politics - USA Tags: taxation and entrepreneurship, taxation and investment, taxation and labour supply
In 2015, I wrote a column entitled “A Nordic Nightmare for Bernie Sanders.” Today, let’s do something similar, but this time I’ll explain why economic data from northernmost Europe is bad news for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. I’m motivated to address the issue because I just saw this tweet about how Scandinavian-Americans are much richer than their […]
A Nordic Nightmare for AOC
Thankfully the Govt did not panic
18 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, energy economics, politics - New Zealand, war and peace Tags: Iran
There is a sort of peace deal between Iran and the US. If it holds, the fuel crisis is over. I’ll do a separate post on the merits of the peace deal, but for now want to focus on the response in NZ. The Government’s response was cool, calm and measured. They did not panic.…
Thankfully the Govt did not panic
Quarter of a million children are now dependent on welfare
18 Jun 2026 1 Comment
in labour economics, politics - New Zealand, poverty and inequality, welfare reform
It’s appalling that a quarter of a million children now need an income from the state to feed, clothe and house them.Data released under the Official Information Act shows over a quarter of a million children were dependent on welfare at December 2025.At 31 December 2025 there were 255,300 children aged 0-17 reliant on a…
Quarter of a million children are now dependent on welfare
Caplan-Jones UATX Debate Video
17 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, Austrian economics, development economics, labour economics, labour supply, law and economics, liberalism, libertarianism, politics - USA Tags: economics of immigration
Here’s the full video from my recent immigration debate at UATX with Garett Jones. Coleman Hughes moderates. (A great guy, and not only did we finally meet in person for dinner; he also came to UATX karaoke!) Here are more debate details from the UATX Substack. I’ve got multiple post-debate commentary essays in my queue,…
Caplan-Jones UATX Debate Video
Labour and Te Pati Maori
16 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in politics - New Zealand Tags: 2026 general election
Politik reports: But Labour may have got the jump on ACT with its leader announcing that it is highly unlikely to go into coalition with the Greens or Te Paati Maori, but instead will simply do confidence and supply agreements with the two parties. This will actually make any Government less stable, and actually make…
Labour and Te Pati Maori
The Spanberger Surge: Virginia Governor May Prove the Greatest Gun Influencer Since Charlton Heston
16 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: gun control
Is Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) a mole for the National Rifle Association (NRA)? After the recent scandal involving the…
The Spanberger Surge: Virginia Governor May Prove the Greatest Gun Influencer Since Charlton Heston
The Hooton-in-chief
16 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
The Post announced: In a bombshell move, former National Party strategist-turned consultant Matthew Hooton has been chosen as the new editor of The Post, replacing outgoing Editor in Chief Tracy Watkins. He hopes NZ’s powerful institutions are ‘a little unsettled’ by his appointment, and has big plans to accelerate the brand to become Kiwis’ primary…
The Hooton-in-chief
Why the Left Keeps Misdiagnosing Populism
15 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in politics - New Zealand Tags: British politics
This article was first published by CapX, the online newspaper of London’s Centre for Policy Studies, on 3 June 2026. It was written for a British audience, but the diagnostic mistake it identifies is universal. * Roger Partridge writes – Andy Burnham has one prescription, and he means to fill it, whatever the patient walks in […]
Why the Left Keeps Misdiagnosing Populism
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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