infrastructure

Publishing • Production • Communications

Showreel

Books

Unleashed

Sex, rackets & vigilantes in

New Zealand's most corrupted community.

He wrote about vigilantes during the Covid lockdowns.

What could possibly go wrong?

How a clique used their council and police connections to try to silence an investigative writer through a series of stitch ups. This Kafkaesque farce delves into a community often at the centre of many New Zealand corruption scandals.

Matakana War Memorial heritage application

Fix Hill Street Now: TVNZ Gutsful episode

Fix Hill Street Now: Visit the campaign website

Matakana War Memorial heritage application

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Welcome to Klaut.

Klaut is the publishing, production, and communications company of Grant McLachlan – a New Zealand-based writer. Grant is a prolific investigative writer of fiction and non-fiction for newspapers, books, and screen.

A former hearings commissioner, barrister, and solicitor, Grant has worked in the public and private sectors, ranging from a Parliamentary researcher and campaign director to a planner and infrastructure specialist. His columns in New Zealand newspapers and his pro-bono work has assisted many people involved in disputes with central and local government authorities.

On this site you will find links to his current and past work. There are several projects in development so please watch this space.

Sparrow

A Chronicle of Defiance

An epic account of The Sparrows

- Battle of Britain gunners who defended Timor as part of Sparrow Force in 1942.

It is the story of Charlie McLachlan's war: a triumph of stubborn Scottish defiance and laconic Aussie genius over the relentless violence of man and nature. Charlie survives and bears witness to some of the landmark days of World War II.

Media Coverage

The Cook Strait Tunnel: Has Elon Musk made it feasible?

The question shouldn't be “How much will it cost?” The question should be “At what cost does this become feasible?”

Feature

Grant McLachlan

Feb 29 min read

New Zealand's Property-Industrial Complex: A democratic warning

In his 1961 farewell address, President Eisenhower warned America about the military-industrial complex. In 2024, New Zealand faces its own existential threat: the property-industrial complex has consumed our democracy whole.

PERSONA NON GRATA

Grant McLachlan - Column

Dec 9, 20254 min read

When good intentions paved the road to gridlock: New Zealand’s cycleway saga

I used to cycle across town to school without a second thought about safety. The roads were shared space, drivers watched out for cyclists, and common sense prevailed. That was before cycling became an industry.

Column

Grant McLachlan

Dec 3, 20254 min read

The roads that never were: Ten New Zealand infrastructure dreams that died on the drawing board

New Zealand’s transport network tells a story not just of what was built, but of what could have been.

Feature

Grant McLachlan

Dec 1, 202519 min read

The Immigration Tap: How National turned a housing crisis into a growth strategy

For nearly a decade, National governments have run the same cynical playbook: when the economy falters, turn on the immigration tap. It’s economic fraud masquerading as policy.

Column

Grant McLachlan

Nov 30, 202510 min read

Investigative journalism master class eviscerating corrupt council

In an era when media organisations frantically downsize, replacing substance with clickbait and advertorial content, a remarkable counter-narrative is unfolding in Queenstown.

Column

Grant McLachlan

Apr 16, 20256 min read

Has Queenstown exceeded capacity?

Queenstown risks destroying the very reason people visit the destination. With the sewerage plant overflowing, can it grow any further?

Column

Grant McLachlan

Feb 7, 20254 min read

Is Queenstown's "Road to Nowhere" a waste of money?

The Queenstown upgrade of Melbourne & Henry Streets has been heralded as a bypass of Queenstown's CBD. Was the $128m price tag worth it?

Review

Grant McLachlan

Feb 5, 20251 min read

Groundhog Day at New Zealand's worst intersection

New Zealand's worst intersection symbolises decades of vested interests and dirty politics dividing an increasingly irrelevant community.

Column

Grant McLachlan

Dec 12, 202411 min read

Signs that voters want change

One sign that voters want change is when they don’t take the government seriously. A sure sign is when authorities won’t enforce those laws.

Column

Grant McLachlan

Feb 20, 20233 min read

Napier to Taupō road a sign of the country going backwards

The Napier to Taupo Road road represented strides in New Zealand's progress. Now, it demonstrates that the country is moving backwards.

Hawke's Bay Today

Grant McLachlan - Hawke's Bay Today - Column

May 3, 20214 min read

Warkworth can’t handle the truth about proposed toll road

Once again, the Herald ignores a topic important to many of their subscribers.

PERSONA NON GRATA

Grant McLachlan - Column

Oct 20, 20203 min read

Dopey economic theory causing social decline

The Herald headline read "Auckland Council golf courses a $2b-plus development bonanza." Here is the column challenging it.

PERSONA NON GRATA

Grant McLachlan - Column

Oct 14, 20204 min read

Lower rural speed limits often worsen congestion

To view the original article, please click here. Be careful what you wish for when suggesting the lowering of speed limits on rural roads. Often it results in unintended consequences. In 2007, the then-named Transit New Zealand (now NZ Transport Agency) published a planning policy manual setting out how it wished to integrate land use around its national roading network. The manual tried to avoid adjacent activities affecting the efficient flow of traffic. The quantity, qu

New Zealand Herald