The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union submitted feedback to the Finance and Expenditure Committee on the Public Finance Amendment Bill, which proposes updates to the Public Finance Act 1989 to improve fiscal transparency and reporting standards. While we support the Bill in principle, our submission recommended several amendments to ensure it provides clear, accurate, and accountable reporting of government finances.
We called for the removal of wellbeing reporting so the Treasury can focus on fiscal stewardship, stronger Tax Expenditure Statements with improved data coverage, extended forecasting periods, and an earlier Pre-Election Economic and Fiscal Update to give voters more time to assess fiscal options.
We also recommended mandatory disclosure of all time-limited funding to highlight programmes that could create “fiscal cliffs” for future governments, and opposed removing the December Half-Year Economic and Fiscal Update in election years.
These measures are vital because they protect the credibility of government fiscal reporting, prevent hidden budget gaps, and ensure taxpayers and voters can hold the government accountable. Transparent, standardised, and forward-looking reporting is essential for disciplined fiscal management and informed public debate.
