Manuscript untitled: Retirement income, tax, and NZ
As many of you know, I have done a lot of work on New Zealand’s retirement and tax systems in the last decade. I have been attracted to this issue because New Zealand has tax and retirement income systems which are now substantially different from those in most high income countries.
Standard economic theory suggests many of the choices New Zealand has made impose disproportionately large costs on current and future young generations. Of course standard economic theory may be wrong. Nonetheless, when a country adopts a path that is different from standard economic theory and normal international practice, it suggests that the path should be carefully investigated to ensure it is in an appropriate direction.
To this end I am planning to write a monograph, serial fashion. Over the next few weeks i propose to write the thing a few pages at time (in between a very busy lecturing schedule in which I am teaching four courses) and post them on this blog. My thanks to Matt and Gulnara for giving me this opportunity. I am not sure how far I shall get, but all feedback is welcome.
Feedback from younger readers is especially welcome, for reasons that will soon be obvious.
Here is page 1 – the good bits version – or, at the moment, the only bits version.
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