Michael Laws on New Zealand’s Failing Free Market 

Maybe the British Conservative Party is only conservative in name only. Like NZ Labour, it is no longer for the working man

As small business owners we are being pushed out by all the hoops to jump through just to run a business. All the rules and regulations help the ones with the resources to do all the paperwork

ACC is another monopolist organization... why pay acc levies when one has private health insurance

Our main stream media needs to start telling the truth about what is happening in nz and the WORLD

The NZX is a total failure shown by near zero new listings. Thus no capital market.

Nailed it Michael!

Regional councils are ‘big’ on their ‘customer service’, which I’m sure most of realise we can’t pay our rates to anyone else. As long as they are helpful, quick and polite we don’t need the rest

My dad and I were talking last week on this. When he went to the USA in 1977, NZ $1.00 = US $1.08. THe government needs to butt out of everything they have no real business doing: social housing is a good example; in the media all I hear is "why doesn't the government do something about it?" Be careful, because the more you ask of the government, they more they will ask of you.

A free market, properly defined is an economy AND a society were Government is separated and is not a player in peoples interactions. It remains on the side lines and acts solely as a referee protecting our individual rights from violation and fraud. It plays NO part in matters economic or social. No such situation has existed in ew Zealand in living memory. hence why there are major problems...

Economics 101 - a market consists of many of willing but not desperate buyers and many of willing but not desperate sellers. So you are right - we have one but not the other. It needs some rebalancing. And you can thank Helen Clarke for devising the Power of General (in)competence of Councils.

The reason the free market is not working in NZ is that there are too many regulations and are making it hard to start and run businesses….again we are living beyond our means with too many regulations…Seymour said he is going to reduce regulations….but we have not seen much meaningful work in that dept as yet.😏

In Europe last Eight weeks, food is half the price, no kidding. NZ is supposed to be a food bowl. We are getting ripped off big time.

Excellent summary of the situation Michael as always

Spot on.

New Zealand never was a ‘free market’

What free market?

We try and emulate larger countries where business's have huge markets ....for heavens sake our total population is half of the city of london or tokyo...economies of scale exist ..we need protections to keep our industries viable...FACT

Croatia, same population as NZ has 6 supermarket chains.

Entertaining!

A free market means just that. It's free to succeed, but also free to fail. Laws makes some good arguments for why our economy 'appears' to be failing, but doesn't mention the anti-free-market policies of the previous Labour led coalition that continues to plague our country now. To forcibly break up larger entities we have, as Laws' suggest, is a kneejerk reaction that interferes with market forces, and weakens our economy by reducing our ability to compete - e.g. think Air New Zealand and how we might compete with Quantas, United, and other overseas airlines that fly here, if Air NZ were broken up. Free markets are risky, but it's also the best platform for innovation, advancement and growth. We ought to have learned that lesson from history. As for the costs? As someone said, 'Cost' is meaningless absent of 'Value'.

Love this. Just on a few myths & stereotypes of the French you made. France rarely retreats from battle, in fact France won more battles than any other country in history. 16 thousand french soldiers died so the Brits could "evacuate" at Dunkirk. The stereotype is from the POMES after WW2 (Thats right the POMES will retreat, call it an "the greatest evacuation" then mock later as cowards, great allies the English). The french honour their soldiers and allies. Also Napoleon was not short and they aren't really that much different than us. However Rugby, Buck shelford may have something to say.......

Kiwi's have been subject to systemic monopolistic price gauging, with profit taking and under investment for decades. We could be the best small economy in the world if we truly had serious anti monopoly regulations, a flat tax system, and a much smaller central government that delivers much more for less.

You dont live in those countrys mike so were did you get your comparisons.?

There needs 6 to 7 market participants with equal market share to have perfect competition. We are miles away from that in most markets. There are many monopolies/duopolies/oligopolies in NZ. Govt/ComCom have previously allowed many mergers (e.g. banks, supermarkets) to occur that shouldn't have occurred had the appropriate weight to competition. The issue with local government is not the same as the private sector competitive market. The issue with local govt (& central govt) is that spending isnt forced through publicly available cost / benefit assessment for all spending before the spending decision is made.

Don’t blame the free market. The problems are caused by a very interventionist state who are about 35% of the economy.

2nd beer. Who can afford the first.

NZ is not a capitalist country anymore because of all the money printing. Banks sell bonds offshore, and then loan that money into NZ. This behaviour increases our money supply - which is the equivalent to printing money. Countries that print money always devalue their dollar and it becomes worth less and less. Just as it has happened in NZ. $100k used to buy half a house in the year 2000. Now it only buys one tenth of a house. the dollar has devalued due to all the money printing. In a capitalist or free market economy you cannot print money out of fresh air. The market sets interest rates depending on how many people want to borrow. NZ is not capitalist at all - we are a fascist country (according to Mussolini's definition) as the Government, Banks and Media all work together with the same agenda. If we were capitalist half of our banks would be insolvent and bankrupt as they have lent money on too many over-valued assets.

‘“Tis the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this son of York”. Not quoting the whole piece is misleading

competition only dilutes the quality of the service and products made available in NZ...especially when you have a small population. This has been evident in education, banking, and supermarkets. NZ should focus on quality not quantity. A more focused education system, and a regulated banking system and supermarkets.

The free market, like democracy, is not perfect, but also like democracy no better system has yet been found. A government (I believe National) ruined supermarket competition by ignoring the commerce commission’s recommendations and allowing a supermarket buy out reducing the competitors from 3 to 2.

the difference between the uk & the other countries you mentioned is that the uk already has a "centre-right" govt so people can see how awful it is

Geez, could you just take down even by one notch the level of sarcasm and cynicism Mr. Laws. You have some good perspectives and opinions. You do not need to be grind them out and make them argumentive by your dripping sarcasm. Serves no purpose but seeming to make you feel good. Not quite what I had hoped for from alternative media. I have made this comment a number of times - how about listening and improving your presentation, rather than just self-righteously pontificating.

Well, of course the free market is a disaster. What we need much, much more regulation. The economy should be run centrally. Wisdom will be found in Wellington government offices.

What a load of rubbish you are spouting..The headline says 'NZ 's Failing Free Market ' and most of your rant has nothing to do with the subject. And did not explain why you think the Free Market is failing us .May be you should look back in history before we had a free market and 'paid through the nose for everything' This was just another excuse to make a video

Ive always said we dont need more all the time, that's a Globalist theory that concentrates power and assets for the few over the many ... Globalist took manufacturing offshore, took off tariffs on Kiwi products that protected our markets ... We had good wages, owned our own homes and were far happier with less and a less diverse ethnic make up, sure some things were more expensive but that encouraged saving for extravagant items and Kiwis were far happier and health as both people and a society.

Well said Michael, Roger Douglas was over rated, just look at what he did to the gas to gasoline plant, we would pay no more than $1.00 per liter if that had not been sold, and still it would have made a profit!