Last month’s United Nations General Assembly revealed a stark division along New Zealand party lines. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern refused to sign the US-led initiative to reduce the consumption and production of drugs. Ardern cited the incumbent Government’s intention to adopt an approach to drug policy that treats it as a health issue. The National… Read More Blog | New Zealand and the Expanding Global War on Drugs

By Matt Fletcher The incumbent Government’s proposed Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Bill passed its first and second readings earlier this year and has strengthened its place as a point of contention within Parliament. The colloquially-named “Waka-Jumping Bill”, if signed into law, would seek to drastically alter the face of New Zealand’s legislature, as well as the… Read More Blog | The Waka-Jumping Bill and the Revival of Unsettled Parliamentary Divisions

By Harshaa Prasad The Public Policy Club was honoured to host four remarkable Kiwi wahine toa last week to celebrate the 125-year anniversary of women’s suffrage in New Zealand. Dame Jenny Shipley, Helen Clark, Chlöe Swarbrick and Louisa Wall spoke to a full room at the Heritage Hotel about intergenerational change in New Zealand’s feminist movement.… Read More Suffrage 125: Reflections, and Looking to the Future

By Eilish Buckley Almost one year on — how is the government’s fees-free tertiary education policy doing? With many students disenfranchised about their mounting debt (worth collectively more than 15 billion dollars[1]), now is a good time to reflect on the fees-free policy that was brought into effect by the Labour government this year. Has… Read More Blog | University Fees: Do We Have a Problem?

By Katie Cammell The Zero Carbon Bill was developed by Generation Zero, a national, youth-led organisation dedicated to achieving a zero carbon future in New Zealand. It aims to address the issue of climate change in New Zealand at a national level. We are already seeing the effects of climate change in New Zealand, with… Read More Blog | Action on Climate Change: The Zero Carbon Bill

125 years ago, New Zealand passed the Electoral Act 1893 and thereby became the first self-governing nation to grant women the right to vote in parliamentary elections. This landmark legislation followed years of courageous and persistent effort, injecting suffrage campaigns worldwide with hope and momentum. Since then, women have held each of New Zealand’s key… Read More Suffrage 125: Dame Jenny Shipley and Helen Clark

By Nancy Chen The Crime of Aggression In the context of international law, “aggression” refers to state conduct that either initiates war directly or drives another state to war. The Crime of Aggression makes an individual liable for an act of aggression committed by a state. As such, state actors (e.g., political and military leaders)… Read More Blog | The Crime of Aggression: How to Stop a War (or at Least Make Politicians Think Twice)

By Katie Cammell Obesity is a growing policy problem in New Zealand. The New Zealand Health Survey 2016/17 found that around 32 per cent of adults were obese, and a further 34 per cent of adults were overweight but not obese [1]. Moreover, around 12 per cent of children were obese, and a further 21… Read More Blog | Should We Introduce a Sugar Tax in New Zealand?

Making its debut in 2018,  the “Social Hackathon” is a 2-day challenge run by Social Innovation New Zealand and the University of Auckland Public Policy Club, taking place over the weekend of 11-12 August. The purpose of the competition is to provide a platform for students to gain experience in real-world problem solving and analysis,… Read More SINZ and PPC Present: Fix the Future – A Social Hackathon