About
Brian Easton
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Brian Easton makes the case for a Universal Family Benefit as a way to reduce child poverty, which he says could reduce child poverty at no extra fiscal cost
22nd Apr 24, 10:30am
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Brian Easton makes the case for a Universal Family Benefit as a way to reduce child poverty, which he says could reduce child poverty at no extra fiscal cost
Brian Easton casts an eye over the general calls for higher economic growth. He wants to see more focus on addressing economic bottlenecks, but can't find evidence less regulation delivers higher growth
15th Apr 24, 12:59pm
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Brian Easton casts an eye over the general calls for higher economic growth. He wants to see more focus on addressing economic bottlenecks, but can't find evidence less regulation delivers higher growth
Independent economist Brian Easton asks; Do we treat the government finances with the common sense that household’s manage theirs?
8th Apr 24, 12:52pm
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Independent economist Brian Easton asks; Do we treat the government finances with the common sense that household’s manage theirs?
Independent economist Brian Easton says budget tensions are becoming evident within the Coalition Government
1st Apr 24, 10:31am
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Independent economist Brian Easton says budget tensions are becoming evident within the Coalition Government
Independent economist Brian Easton wonders if Nicola Willis is hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition
25th Mar 24, 8:31am
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Independent economist Brian Easton wonders if Nicola Willis is hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition
What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions, independent economist Brian Easton writes
18th Mar 24, 9:31am
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What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions, independent economist Brian Easton writes
Independent economist Brian Easton says households with children are more likely to have mortgages, so they are likely to be hit more heavily by the rise in interest rates
4th Mar 24, 9:20am
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Independent economist Brian Easton says households with children are more likely to have mortgages, so they are likely to be hit more heavily by the rise in interest rates
Independent economist Brian Easton looks at the sorry story of earthquake-prone buildings
26th Feb 24, 8:39am
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Independent economist Brian Easton looks at the sorry story of earthquake-prone buildings
Independent economist Brian Easton says public policy towards tobacco consumption remains politically sensitive
19th Feb 24, 8:29am
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Independent economist Brian Easton says public policy towards tobacco consumption remains politically sensitive
Independent economist Brian Easton says Christopher Luxon has to address the need to maintain and enhance New Zealand’s social cohesion
22nd Jan 24, 8:45am
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Independent economist Brian Easton says Christopher Luxon has to address the need to maintain and enhance New Zealand’s social cohesion
Independent economist Brian Easton says the New Zealand economy is struggling and he believes the new government will struggle to implement its economic promises
15th Jan 24, 8:25am
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Independent economist Brian Easton says the New Zealand economy is struggling and he believes the new government will struggle to implement its economic promises
Brian Easton reviews the work of Robert Solow, a Nobel prize-winning economist who transformed the way we think about economic growth
8th Jan 24, 9:10am
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Brian Easton reviews the work of Robert Solow, a Nobel prize-winning economist who transformed the way we think about economic growth
Independent economist Brian Easton finds the incoming Minister of Finance politically cavalier and misleading with her early judgments, not the sort of qualities a senior minister with financial responsibilities should be displaying
22nd Dec 23, 9:00am
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Independent economist Brian Easton finds the incoming Minister of Finance politically cavalier and misleading with her early judgments, not the sort of qualities a senior minister with financial responsibilities should be displaying
In his Economists in the Cold War book, Alan Bollard contrasts Saburo Okita of Japan with Zhou En Lai of China to highlight a critical issue, writes economist Brian Easton
18th Dec 23, 9:01am
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In his Economists in the Cold War book, Alan Bollard contrasts Saburo Okita of Japan with Zhou En Lai of China to highlight a critical issue, writes economist Brian Easton
Economist Brian Easton says Alan Bollard, formerly Treasury Secretary, Reserve Bank Governor and Chairman of APEC, has written an insightful book exploring command vs demand approaches to the economy
11th Dec 23, 8:49am
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Economist Brian Easton says Alan Bollard, formerly Treasury Secretary, Reserve Bank Governor and Chairman of APEC, has written an insightful book exploring command vs demand approaches to the economy
Economist Brian Easton says the coalition party agreements are mainly about returning to 2017 when National lost power. They show commonalities but also some serious divergencies
4th Dec 23, 8:22am
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Economist Brian Easton says the coalition party agreements are mainly about returning to 2017 when National lost power. They show commonalities but also some serious divergencies
Economist Brian Easton assesses Winston Peters' past performance as a cabinet minister and finds that Peters has been 'a reasonable but not outstanding minister' showing very good political skills - but mediocre policy ones
27th Nov 23, 9:14am
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Economist Brian Easton assesses Winston Peters' past performance as a cabinet minister and finds that Peters has been 'a reasonable but not outstanding minister' showing very good political skills - but mediocre policy ones
The picture the commentariat presents of Winston Peters is a misleading caricature. If we don’t try to understand the complexity of the man, we cannot understand what is going on in New Zealand politics, writes economist Brian Easton
20th Nov 23, 8:12am
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The picture the commentariat presents of Winston Peters is a misleading caricature. If we don’t try to understand the complexity of the man, we cannot understand what is going on in New Zealand politics, writes economist Brian Easton
Economist Brian Easton draws attention to the complexities of implementing a politician’s promises or popular demands and says we are going to be disappointed because once again many manifesto promises got fudged in the heat of the campaign
13th Nov 23, 9:28am
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Economist Brian Easton draws attention to the complexities of implementing a politician’s promises or popular demands and says we are going to be disappointed because once again many manifesto promises got fudged in the heat of the campaign
Economist Brian Easton says there is a view that the world economy is entering a period of higher inflation and higher nominal interest rates, but who knows? Presumably New Zealand has to follow
6th Nov 23, 9:46am
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Economist Brian Easton says there is a view that the world economy is entering a period of higher inflation and higher nominal interest rates, but who knows? Presumably New Zealand has to follow
Economist Brian Easton says the more informed an economist is, the more they keep their head down during elections
30th Oct 23, 8:32am
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Economist Brian Easton says the more informed an economist is, the more they keep their head down during elections
Brian Easton says while Claudia Goldin won the 2023 Nobel Economics Laureateship and may have progressed our understanding of women in the economy, that has not resolved all the issues
23rd Oct 23, 9:28am
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Brian Easton says while Claudia Goldin won the 2023 Nobel Economics Laureateship and may have progressed our understanding of women in the economy, that has not resolved all the issues
Economist Brian Easton says while Singapore and New Zealand have rather different economic structures, the two small economies work together in the international political economy
9th Oct 23, 8:39am
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Economist Brian Easton says while Singapore and New Zealand have rather different economic structures, the two small economies work together in the international political economy
Economist Brian Easton says while the economy is not doing too badly in output terms, external circumstances are not favourable, and there is probably a sizeable group of households struggling because of rising interest rates
2nd Oct 23, 8:57am
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Economist Brian Easton says while the economy is not doing too badly in output terms, external circumstances are not favourable, and there is probably a sizeable group of households struggling because of rising interest rates
Economist Brian Easton says a close analysis of the Treasury assessment of the Medium Term in its PREFU 2023 suggests the economy may be entering a new phase
25th Sep 23, 9:25am
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Economist Brian Easton says a close analysis of the Treasury assessment of the Medium Term in its PREFU 2023 suggests the economy may be entering a new phase