After a nine year absence, the Taxpayers’ Union has relaunched its policy costing "Bribe-O-Meter" for the 2026 election, with the first update showing the Greens have already promised $114,139 per household in new spending.
The Bribe-O-Meter is the most comprehensive independent policy costing project undertaken in New Zealand. It cuts through the political noise by independently costing political party policies to show taxpayers what each party’s promises would cost on a per household basis.
The Bribe-O-Meter will be updated every week through to election day on 7 November to show what, where, and how parties are bribing voters with their own cash.
Today's release of the Bribe-O-Meter (which covers all policy announcements up to 11:59pm Sunday 6 September 2026) reveals that the Greens and Opportunity are far and away the biggest spenders, promising to blow $114,000-per-household and $97,000-per-household respectively. On the other side of the table, ACT has so far pledged $1,271, and National just $936 per household, in new spending.
| Party | Spending Promise | Cost Per Household |
|---|---|---|
| National | $1.94 billion | $936 |
| ACT | $2.63 billion | $1,271 |
| Labour | $50.47 billion | $24,358 |
| NZ First | $45.22 billion | $21,822 |
| Opportunity | $200.99 billion | $97,005 |
| Green Party | $236.50 billion | $114,139 |
| Te Pāti Māori | Uncostable - too vague | N/A |
Commenting on the project's launch, Taxpayers' Union Head of Policy James Ross said:
"This year's elections bribes are coming thick and fast, and they're bigger than ever. Kiwis deserve to know the cost of this election before they vote."
"The Greens and Opportunity are far and away the biggest spenders so far this year, but every party is going to cost taxpayers. If politicians won't front up on the cost of their policies, then we will do it for them."
Weekly Bribe-O-Meter updates, including our Transparency Score Rankings, are available at www.taxpayers.org.nz/bribe_o_meter.
FAQ:
What is the Bribe-O-Meter?
The Bribe-O-Meter compiles the political promises of each of the main political parties, broken down by spending category.
The Bribe-O-Meter is about transparency. The Taxpayers’ Union’s policy staff and advisors will be updating the figures weekly, allowing potential voters to assess which parties are offering value for taxpayers’ money as the election campaign progresses.
Current Government spending plans are used as a baseline, so only policies that deviate from current Government policy spending are included.
How have you costed each policy?
For some policies, we have taken parties at their word. For uncosted policies, these have been independently costed by our team. In some cases, where parties' costings are not reasonable or based on a questionable assumption, independent costing have been preferred. These costings are separately listed within the Bribe-O-Meter. Explainers for each can be found at www.taxpayers.org.nz/bribe_o_meter_workings
Will you work with parties to update your figures?
Absolutely! We want to provide the public and media with as much information as possible. If there are errors or a party disagrees with our assessment of their costings, we hope that the Bribe-O-Meter will encourage the parties to provide the public with more information and transparency.
How often will the Bribe-O-Meter be updated?
The Bribe-O-Meter will be updated on a weekly basis, with updates published every Wednesday between now and the election.
Are the graphics free to use?
Yes, the media are free to use the graphics, but we ask that they are attributed to the Taxpayers' Union.
