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Keith Rankin
Political Economist, Scoop Columnist
Keith Rankin taught economics at Unitec in Mt Albert since 1999. An economic historian by training, his research has included an analysis of labour supply in the Great Depression of the 1930s, and has included estimates of New Zealand's GNP going back to the 1850s.
Keith believes that many of the economic issues that beguile us cannot be understood by relying on the orthodox interpretations of our social science disciplines. Keith favours a critical approach that emphasises new perspectives rather than simply opposing those practices and policies that we don't like.
Keith retired in 2020 and lives with his family in Glen Eden, Auckland.
Keith Rankin - Latest News [Page 17]
UK Election: Anticipation and Afterthoughts
Monday, 11 May 2015, 9:06 am | Keith Rankin
Last Thursday's British election (7 May) result was a surprise to just about everyone in the United Kingdom. But not to me. I correctly anticipated the result on 23 April ( United Kingdom General Election on 7 May ), and on 2 May ( First-Past-the-Post ... More >>
Thought for this Day: Regressive Transport Levy in Auckland?
Monday, 4 May 2015, 10:10 am | Keith Rankin
The press release from Auckland Council about the proposed interim levy on ratepayers is ambiguous, possibly intentionally so. First it describes "an interim fixed levy on ratepayers" and on the next paragraph mentions a levy that "has ... More >>
Meaningful Opportunities for Young Men : Keith Rankin
Thursday, 30 April 2015, 12:43 pm | Keith Rankin
On 28 April ( New Zealand population dynamics before and after WW1 ) I noted the special demographic circumstances of the years immediately prior to World War 1. Here I would like to extend the argument that young men in particular need constructive ... More >>
New Zealand population dynamics before and after WW1
Tuesday, 28 April 2015, 1:28 pm | Keith Rankin
Keith Rankin, 28 April 2015 Studies of populations and migrations commonly use the term 'safety-valve' to describe opportunities that relieve population pressure in particular places. One example is 'For Spirit and Adventure' by Angela McCarthy, ... More >>
Re: United Kingdom General Election on 7 May : Keith Rankin
Thursday, 23 April 2015, 11:21 am | Keith Rankin
I enjoy listening to Dame Anne Leslie, long-time Daily Mail journalist, who pops up regularly on the UK Correspondent section of Radio New Zealand's Nine-to-Noon. She has an amazing gift for the consummate turn of phrase More >>
Rent Now, Live Life, Buy Later Maybe
Thursday, 16 April 2015, 10:09 am | Keith Rankin
The hand-wringing about the Auckland property market continues to escalate; the headless chickens run amok through the corridors of power, and through the mainstream media. More >>
Thought for this Day: Getting Ahead and Behind
Monday, 13 April 2015, 9:48 am | Keith Rankin
Hilary Clinton is running for US President on a platform of people "getting ahead". Andrew Little also used that "getting ahead" line frequently during Labour's primary election last year. (His rivals used the equally trite "aspiration".) More >>
Keith Rankin : Nuanced Economic Growth
Thursday, 9 April 2015, 9:51 am | Keith Rankin
On Tuesday I listened to Eric Crampton (of the New Zealand Initiative ) discussing on Radio New Zealand the virtues of economic growth. It was a good discussion, and Crampton's view was much more nuanced than those of many growth advocates. More >>
Thought for this Day: Negative Interest
Thursday, 2 April 2015, 9:47 am | Keith Rankin
For most of this year, Denmark and Switzerland have had negative interest rates. Sweden has since joined them. We might have thought that this revolution in finance would have been among the biggest news stories of the year. More >>
Keith Rankin : Subsistence and the Benefit
Tuesday, 31 March 2015, 10:11 am | Keith Rankin
Yesterday on Radio New Zealand's Morning Report "Te Manu Korihi for 30 March 2015", Mana's Hone Harawira discussed the matter of unemployed Maori returning to their home rural villages losing their 'job-seeker' benefits, and how this process may ... More >>
Reflecting on the Northland Byelection
Monday, 30 March 2015, 8:58 am | Keith Rankin
National's vulnerability in Northland should have taken nobody by surprise. Winston Peters is a very natural fit in his tūrangawaeawe. National, on 49% in Northland at the general election did not even have a majority of party votes. Patrick Gower ... More >>
Reflecting on the Northland Byelection
Monday, 30 March 2015, 8:57 am | Keith Rankin
Keith Rankin, 30 March 2015 National's vulnerability in Northland should have taken nobody by surprise. Winston Peters is a very natural fit in his tūrangawaeawe. National, on 49% in Northland at the general election did not even have a majority of party ... More >>
Thought for this Day: Empty Houses as Second Residences
Thursday, 26 March 2015, 3:18 pm | Keith Rankin
On 23 March I wrote in Scoop about Graham Adams' article in North and South (April 2015), which attributed Auckland's housing crisis to easy credit. In the same edition of that magazine is an article ("Running on Empty") by Joanna Wane that features ... More >>
Is Easy Credit the Problem? | Keith Rankin
Tuesday, 24 March 2015, 10:00 am | Keith Rankin
In the weekend I read Graham Adams' article in North and South (April 2015) "The Madness of the Auckland Housing Market". Adams is right to argue strongly that the issue is much more about finance than it is about land supply. But he goes far too ... More >>
Thought for this Day: Interpreting Economic Growth
Monday, 23 March 2015, 8:51 am | Keith Rankin
On Saturday I published a Daily Blog Economic Outlook: Growth or Slowth?. It was essentially about putting the latest economic growth figures (3.3 percent annual growth) in context. It's probably the peak of a cycle, with the long term trend now ... More >>
Keith Rankin : Sugarnomics
Thursday, 12 March 2015, 12:32 pm | Keith Rankin
I watched TVNZ's Sunday item (8 March) about Rob Beaglehole's campaign to tax sugar drinks ( One man's mission to get rid of our sweet tooth ). More >>
'Competitiveness' is not an Economic Concept | Keith Rankin
Tuesday, 10 March 2015, 10:56 am | Keith Rankin
On Q+A on Sunday, Kim Campbell (CEO of the Employers and Manufacturers Association) expressed the 'popular' productionist view of economics to a tee ( http://tvnz.co.nz/q-and-a-news/kim-campbell-supports-labour-s-campaign-cut-back-acc-levies-video-6249884 ). More >>
Northland, Vernon Cracknell, Social Credit : Keith Rankin
Monday, 9 March 2015, 9:36 am | Keith Rankin
Watching the weekend coverage of the coming Northland by-election, I was hoping to see some mention of the 1966 precedent, when Northland (under the name of Hobson) was centre of attention in a general election. More >>
Fixing Tax Evadance through Public Equity | Keith Rankin
Thursday, 5 March 2015, 3:15 pm | Keith Rankin
On Sunday I watched a BBC Panorama programme about the widespread use in Britain of secret Swiss bank accounts for the purpose of tax avoidance, with particular focus on the Swiss operations of HSBC. More >>
Thought for this Day: Balance of Reasonable Doubt
Tuesday, 3 March 2015, 9:07 am | Keith Rankin
I watched the final of series 2 of Broadchurch (TV1) on Sunday. This drama depicted the trial a person the audience already knew to be guilty (from series 1). The defence of the accused was based purely on creating doubt, and the main device for creating ... More >>
