Leighton Smith interviews Don Brash, July 29, 2026
- Administrator
- Aug 6
- 1 min read
Listen here
This 2026 election has much of the constituency concerned about a result that could lead to the end of the country as we know it.
Don Brash, arguably the best Reserve Bank Governor we’ve known, voices his thoughts on the matters he believes are most important.
He talks about our appallingly slow productivity growth - and on the country’s GDP per capita.
He also reflects on house prices, the long term outlook for government debt, foreign policy and race relations.
And he rates the present government on its effectiveness.
I always remember Leighton Smith's warning about ardern, preaching 'comrades' to the world young socialists (undoubtedly, few of them would know what a true sociaslist was), prior to her 'Peter principle' leadership appointment disaster (there must be a more appropriate word). .
We should have listened, but we did not.
One of the very few, dying breed, journalists left (or maybe, more accurately, centrist)
Ameni
A worthwhile listen. Don was on form and I always enjoy Leighton's relaxed, knowledgeable interviewing style.
There are many areas on which I respect Don's views and particularly his tireless efforts battling against woke racial division these days. Though one area I find myself at odds with his views is on defence policy. He suggests ours should be more like Singapore's relatively neutral stance, without accounting for the huge difference in defensive self-reliance. Yes New Zealand is a less attractive prize as well as having a big moat. That latter would force an invader into maintaining a long, blue water logistics chain that could potentially be leveraged as a significant deterrent, if only we had something at the end …
“That government is best which governs least”—Henry David Thoreau
The problem with socialism is that sooner or later one runs out of other people’s money”—Margaret Thatcher
A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take everything you have”—Thomas Jefferson
“The State is that great fiction by which everyone attempts to live at the expense of everybody else”—Frederic Bastiat
I absorb information better if I read it so won't be listening to a podcast. It is not hard to create a written document from a verbal account.
What do the people called the government do or not do?
Mostly they create more regulations that we have to comply with and spend more of our money trying to administer those regulations. These increasing regulations that have to be adapted to constantly change the rules of the social and economic "games" we are involved in.
Some people with wealth benefit from the changes of the rules and even have political influence to gain more advantages from them.
The majority of people do not have the weath or influence to benefit from the changes to the rules of the games so they become worse off, confused and discouraged.
We have all been encouraged to believe that we will do well if…