Professor Rod NcNaughton: NZ’s low productivity is often blamed on businesses staying small. That could be a strength in 2026

For decades, we have heard a familiar story about why New Zealand’s firms choose to stay small. Business owners prefer comfort, control and lifestyle over ambition, summed up in the old notion of the “bach, boat and BMW” being the height of aspiration.

The statistics show this pattern clearly. New Zealand’s productivity has lagged other advanced economies for years, with output per hour worked sitting below the OECD average.

Point of Order: Buzz from the Beehive - 20/7/23

$90m to help wean Fonterra from coal, an easing of our liquor laws – and a crackdown on those bloody ram-raiders

A question about corporate welfare is answered in the latest batch of statements posted on the government’s official website.

The question is: which corporate giants are being given a funding pick-me-up?

Point of Order: DoC doubles the dip for doing good to biodiversity and heritage sites

That means $9.2m will be distributed

Oh goody – an invitation to a trough which has been laden with twice as much largess this year because it was not available last year.

Inviting potential applicants to slurp at the $9.2 million swill, Acting Conservation Minister Meka Whaitiri described it as a fund for community-led efforts to protect threatened species and at-risk cultural heritage.

It has opened for applications today.