Does #PanamaPapers matter to New Zealand?

Does #PanamaPapers matter to New Zealand?

Over at Public Address there is a post called Forgetting what we didn’t know which is about the New Zealand media / government response to the #PanamaPapers. In short various stories and government comments imply that the revelations have amounted to nothing....
#TEDxAKL 2016 live notes

#TEDxAKL 2016 live notes

Since the first TEDxAuckland events back in 2009 there have been a huge number of speakers (100+) and attendees (7000+) who come along each year to be surprised, challenged, inspired, entertained and informed. In the early days finding speakers was easy because the...
Bernie Sanders Wins Hearts & Minds

Bernie Sanders Wins Hearts & Minds

The Democrats in the U.S have a serious problem. Their preferred candidate Hillary Clinton was supposed to have everything stitched up by now. And then Bernie has gone and won Indiana. His 18th win in a race that was supposed to be a slam dunk for Clinton. The Clinton...
TEDxAuckland 2016 Preview

TEDxAuckland 2016 Preview

TEDxAuckland 2016 is a bit different this year as it is spread out over a day and a half with 22+ speakers. It also takes place on a Thursday and Friday rather than a weekend. “TEDxAuckland 2016: flipside will feature two days of talks, events, activities and social...
Nature or nurture or Good intentions

Nature or nurture or Good intentions

There is a saying that the “road to hell is paved with good intentions.” I was thinking of this when I heard that Oliver James was being interviewed on a local radio station. You can listen below if you like. The talk gave James a chance to talk about his...
How to stop the Panama Papers & clean up tax havens

How to stop the Panama Papers & clean up tax havens

With greater mobility comes greater promise and greater potential for dodgy dealing. None of these off shore tax haven systems are new. What is newish is speed at which transactions and structures can be “managed” for good or for the few. The beneficiaries...
Trading Bank Bubble? in NZ

Trading Bank Bubble? in NZ

Here is some math for you all. What is 51% of $400b? The simple calculation says $200b. However when half of all trading bank lending is on the personal housing market the correct answer is a giant speculative bubble. That 200b number looks like a very measurable and...