The Task

Page updated 24 June 2013

Write us an essay on one of three topics.

In a 2,000-word-maximum paper (excluding footnotes), answer one of the three questions below:

1. Crown assets

The Crown holds a large array of different assets, covering three broad portfolios:

• Commercial Assets
• Financial Assets; and
• Social Assets.

For more information on these asset classes see the 2010 Investment Statement of the Government of New Zealand.

Discuss the principles you think the Crown should apply in determining what assets it should own, what it should sell, and what it should invest more in, providing examples and the rationale for your conclusions.

2. Health

Public health spending in New Zealand has been increasing faster than national income for most of the last half-century. Keeping public health spending at sustainable levels presents a significant challenge for government.

Around 80% of total health spending in New Zealand is spent by the government. For some of the health services the government subsidises, it requires consumers of those products to pay part of the costs themselves. Examples are prescription medications and visits to the doctor.

Assess the pros and cons of extending the use of part payments in our health system. That could mean extending part payments to other kinds of health services, or increasing the level of part payments that the Government already charges, or both.

3. Overseas Investment

Foreign investment is an important source of capital that allows our firms to grow, and can also bring new technologies, skills, connections to international networks and other benefits to further enhance productivity and growth.

The Government’s stated overall policy approach to overseas investment in sensitive New Zealand assets is to achieve a balance between ensuring those assets are adequately protected while facilitating overseas investment that provides benefits to New Zealand.

What changes to the current regulatory framework would you recommend in order to better achieve this balance between opportunities and risks?

Judging

The Treasury will invite students who wrote the best essays to come to the Treasury and briefly present their analysis. The writer of the best essay will be awarded a scholarship of $2,500 towards his or her university fees for 2014.

Essays will be judged on the basis of:

• Depth and breadth of analysis of the policy issues;
• Appropriate use of evidence to justify any recommendations; and
• Assessment from a broad range of perspectives / impact of the policy across different dimensions

Tip: one of the tools that we use at The Treasury to help us give policy advice is the Living Standards Framework, which includes a broad range of factors that affect the well-being of both the individual and society. This framework may help you to identify the range of effects that a policy may have. You can find out more about the Treasury’s Living Standards Framework here:
http://www.treasury.govt.nz/abouttreasury/higherlivingstandards

All essays are due on the Monday 26 August 2013 at 5pm!