“There’s always a reason to say no, but if we keep saying no, we’ll keep going nowhere.”

With these words in his ‘State of the Nation’ speech last week, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon diagnosed a critical barrier to New Zealand’s economic growth: a culture of negativity and excessive caution.

Only a few days later, his government provided the perfect test case for Luxon’s diagnosis.

Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford and Tourism Minister Louise Upston jointly announced a new policy to allow visitors to work for their overseas employers while holidaying in New Zealand.

Despite the involvement of three senior cabinet ministers, it is hardly a revolutionary policy. It merely aligns New Zealand with a growing global trend. Many countries are trying to attract high-spending professionals who combine work and travel.

The economic logic is obvious, too. Tourism is New Zealand’s second-largest export earner, generating nearly $11 billion in revenue.

The digital nomads New Zealand wants to attract typically stay longer and spend more money than ordinary tourists.

Better still, digital nomads can boost local economies during shoulder seasons when hotels are not fully booked. And sometimes, those longer stays might even lead to longer-term investments in New Zealand.

Nice policy. But it gets even better: It is also easy to implement. No new bureaucracy is needed. All it takes is a simple clarification of existing visa rules: longer-staying tourists can now work for overseas employers. It is that simple.

For Luxon’s government, now laser-focused on economic growth, it seemed like the perfect initiative. Yet, the public reaction was swift and instructive. It confirmed the negative mindset Luxon had talked about in his speech.

“They’ll take our housing,” warned one online commenter. “Make them bring their own tents,” suggested another. Several demanded mandatory health insurance. One feared an invasion of “influencers trying to get free stuff.”

These responses perfectly illustrate the “culture of saying no” that Luxon identified. Many New Zealanders are quick to spot problems, big or small, but slower to see opportunities.

Opposition Leader and former Prime Minister Chris Hipkins echoed the negative mindset. “We’ve got a large number of people who are currently in the country leaving,” he argued. “Perhaps we should be a bit more focused on keeping them here.” As if that was the alternative.

Hipkins dismissed the initiative by claiming it would not “suddenly turn around” the country’s economic fortunes. Well, nobody had claimed it would – but it could be a small step towards doing so.

Meanwhile, other countries are seizing the opportunity. Portugal’s D7 visa programme has become the gold standard for attracting remote workers and digital professionals. It even offers a pathway to residency. No wonder Portuguese cities like Lisbon and Porto have become vibrant tech hubs.

And Portugal is not alone. Croatia, Estonia, Spain and Dubai have their own digital nomad schemes. Even Thailand and Indonesia now actively court these high-spending visitors.

The contrast with New Zealand is striking. While Mediterranean and Asian cities buzz with new energy and investment from remote workers, New Zealand debates imaginary problems.

Yes, there are some legitimate concerns about the policy. Digital nomads staying longer than 90 days may face tax implications. Perhaps infrastructure in popular tourist spots might need upgrading. And maybe some cafes will need to order more Arabica beans and avocado.

But normal countries could overcome such challenges, which points us to a deeper cultural issue in New Zealand.

Unfortunately, New Zealand’s “can’t do” mindset goes far beyond tourism policy.

Take the Port of Tauranga. Its expansion would boost exports for forestry, kiwifruit and dairy. The last time I checked, these were important industries for New Zealand. Yet bureaucratic delays have stalled the project for years. Luxon rightly calls this inertia unacceptable.

Restrictions on Eden Park’s operations highlight another economic opportunity lost to red tape. New Zealanders fly to Australia for concerts in packed stadiums. Meanwhile, Auckland’s largest venue operates under council-imposed event caps.

There is a major irony in all this. New Zealand pioneered bold economic reforms in the 1980s. Today, however, it is debated whether tourists can check their work emails from a café.

For Luxon’s government, getting rid of bureaucracy is the easy part. The real mission is to shift mindsets.

Success with smaller policies, like this ‘digital nomad’ visa, could help set the stage for larger reforms—port upgrades, faster consents, and infrastructure investment.

Luxon must deliver his reforms, and he must do so fast. As New Zealand frets over imagined risks, other countries compete for high-spending remote workers.

The real risk for New Zealand is not that digital nomads might strain its infrastructure or demand free lattes. It is not even that they might simply choose to take their laptops and credit cards elsewhere.

The real risk is that New Zealand remains stuck in its “can’t do, won’t grow” mindset.

To read the full article on The Australian website, click here.