Responding to the Minister of Finance’s announcement today of an independent review into COVID-19 monetary policy, Taxpayers’ Union spokesperson James Ross said the review is “long overdue”.

“The Reserve Bank pumped far too much money into the economy. The result was a surge in asset prices and the kind of inflation that has hammered households ever since.”

“When the Bank finally realised it had let the inflation genie out of the bottle, it responded with sharp rises in the Official Cash Rate. That response tipped the economy into recession: a recession the former Governor, Adrian Orr, quite publicly said was necessary.”

“But the downturn has been deeper and longer than even he appears to have anticipated.”

“A searching investigation into how the Reserve Bank assessed the situation, and how it reached its decisions, is desperately needed. The review must examine the apparent lack of coordination between monetary and fiscal policy, and recommend corrective action.”

“It also needs to scrutinise the Bank’s use of ‘alternative’ tools, including the scale, timing, and duration of those interventions.”

“The Bank brutalised the New Zealand economy to correct its own mistakes. New Zealanders are still living with the consequences of the worst Bank-induced recession in more than thirty years.”

“This cannot be a once-over-lightly desktop exercise. It must be a forensic examination that produces a practical blueprint to prevent a repeat of this economic disaster. The public deserve nothing less.”

“The review should also have the full legal powers of a government inquiry. Decision makers should be required to give evidence under oath and in public. These decisions had major, real-world impacts on New Zealanders’ lives, and transparency demands it.”

Responding to news that Christchurch City Council is proposing an 8 percent rates rise, Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Josh Van Veen said:

“Delaying the rates cap will cost ratepayers across the country, and Christchurch is no exception. Rates need capping now, not three years down the road.”

“Christchurch households are paying the price for the Government’s dilly-dallying. Another 8 percent rates hike is planned this year, on top of a staggering 24 percent increase over the past three years.

“With Local Government Minister Simon Watts postponing action until 2029, councils have every incentive to load costs onto ratepayers now and lock in a higher baseline. That doesn’t just mean higher rates this year; it means higher rates every year from here on out.”

The Taxpayers’ Union is backing a proposal by Christchurch City councillors to freeze the pay of chief executives and directors at council-owned companies, saying it is a positive step that should now be extended more broadly across the council.

Taxpayers' Union spokesperson Tory Relf said:

“This is a constructive start, and we commend councillors willing to show restraint at the top. The Council’s chief executive has already acknowledged the pressure on ratepayers by taking a pay cut herself, and that example of frugality should now be reflected more widely across the organisation.”

“Christchurch City Council still employs more than 1,000 staff earning over $100,000 a year, including 45 paid more than a backbench Member of Parliament. As households brace for another significant rates increase, it’s fair to question whether this level of senior pay is sustainable.”

“Ratepayers are being asked to tighten their belts. It’s only reasonable that the same discipline shown by the chief executive is applied throughout senior management.”

“This isn’t about targeting individuals, it’s about priorities. With rates continuing to rise, the Council must show it is managing costs responsibly and living within its means.”

The Taxpayers’ Union has today launched its Councillor Salary Increase Dashboard, exposing the staggering pay hikes many councillors and mayors across New Zealand are receiving while ratepayers struggle with a cost-of-living crisis.

According to the latest dashboard data, local councillors have accepted an average 9.81 percent annual adjustment to their pay, while mayors have seen an average jump of 8.53 percent. These increases dwarf the 2.7 percent inflation rate recorded during the 2025 financial year.

Taxpayers’ Union spokesperson Tory Relf said:

“While many Kiwis struggled to afford summer treats this year, our local councillors have had no such concerns, pocketing huge pay hikes while rates explode. It is a kick in the teeth for ratepayers who have seen their average rates bill rise by 8.39 percent in the last year.”

“These figures don’t even include the 'top-up' allowances mayors and councillors receive, such as phones, laptops, printers, mileage reimbursements for driving to work, and childcare allowances. The system is broken and designed to prevent pay from being tied to performance or outcomes.”

“Take Queenstown-Lakes District Council for example. Despite having the largest per-capita debt burden in the country and hitting ratepayers with a whopping 50.23 percent rates increase in just three years, in percentage terms its councillors are receiving the second-highest pay increase in the country this year, while the mayor's ranks ninth.”

“Councils must be given the legal option to turn down these increases so ratepayers can see who is actually serious about easing the pressure on households.”

The full Councillor Salary Increase Dashboard can be accessed at https://www.taxpayers.org.nz/pay_rise_dashboard.

The top 10 biggest increases in councillor pay are: 

1. Western Bay of Plenty District Council – 56.86%
2. Queenstown-Lakes District Council – 33.13%
3. Selwyn District Council – 31.03%
4. Waimakariri District Council – 26.87%
5. Porirua City Council – 26.73%
6. Waipā District Council – 25.67%
7. Whanganui District Council – 24.66%
8. Invercargill City Council – 24.29%
9. Napier City Council – 20.84%
10. Tauranga City Council – 19.28%

 The top 10 biggest increases in mayoral pay are:

1. Mackenzie District Council – 15.02%
2. Tasman District Council – 12.01%
3. Wairoa District Council – 11.58%
4. Central Otago District Council – 11.46%
5. South Wairarapa District Council – 11.39%
6. Westland District Council – 11.18%
7. Hauraki District Council – 11.04%
8. Marlborough District Council – 10.99%
9. Queenstown-Lakes District Council – 10.83%
10. Chatham Islands Council – 10.66%

Responding to reports that officials are floating an interim regulator for council development levies, despite the regime not coming into force until mid-2028, Taxpayers’ Union spokesperson Tory Relf said the Government should stick with the Commerce Commission from day one.

“There’s no logic in inventing a temporary regulator when there are still two years to get this right. The Government is right to back the Commerce Commission from the outset.”

“Claims from officials that proper oversight would undermine local democracy are bizarre. Ratepayers have suffered years of cost blowouts and weak accountability. Forcing councils to properly justify how they spend other people’s money would strengthen local democracy, not weaken it.”

“The Commerce Commission already regulates complex infrastructure monopolies like electricity lines and gas pipelines. It has the expertise and credibility to design a robust, independent process for setting development levies and to keep councils honest.”

“The Government should rule out any interim regulator and confirm now that the Commerce Commission will be the permanent watchdog. If councils want ratepayers’ trust, they need real scrutiny, not another layer of bureaucratic make-believe.”

The Taxpayers’ Union is calling out Tasman District Council for treating family pets like major infrastructure projects, after a local dog owner was slapped with a jaw-dropping $1,400 fee for a resource consent just to keep three dogs on his property.

“In Tasman, puppies now need planning permission,” says Taxpayers’ Union spokesperson, Tory Relf.

“Since when did the council decide dogs are a consenting activity? What’s next – building consent for a kennel? LIM reports on Labradors?”

"According to RNZ, the owner was shocked to learn that having more than two dogs on her lifestyle block required a process usually reserved for housing developments or sewage treatment plants."

“We love dogs, but this policy’s gone walkies. A council that thinks someone needs to file paperwork and fork out over a grand just to give a home to a pup needs to have its head checked, preferably by a vet.”

The Taxpayers’ Union is urging Tasman District Council to roll over on this ridiculous regulation.

The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union can reveal through a Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act request that Tauranga City Council has spent a total of $67,739 on decorative artwork for a single bus stop with $50,000 or 73.8 percent of the cost on design alone.

Taxpayers’ Union Investigations Coordinator, Rhys Hurley, said:

“This is another case of councils treating ratepayers like an open chequebook. Nearly $70,000 on a single piece of bus stop art is absurd.”

“You could buy a new car for what they spent on artwork at a bus stop. Worse still, most of it went on ‘design’ not materials, not installation, but presumably someone sketching it out at a desk.”

"All this comes the same week the Council also celebrated the opening of its brand-new $45 million headquarters, as residents brace for a 9.9 percent rates rise."  

“The pattern is clear: the culture of waste will continue until councils are forced to live within their means. We need Rates Capping Now!"

The Taxpayers’ Union has welcomed ACT’s announcement that its local candidates will oppose council-level emissions policies, calling it a needed step to rein in wasteful spending and refocus councils on core services. 

Taxpayers’ Union spokesman James Ross said:

“Under the Emissions Trading Scheme, emissions are already capped nationally. Local climate plans don’t cut a single gram of net emissions - they just burn through ratepayers’ money for no environmental gain.”

“Rates were hiked 15 percent on average last year. The last thing cash-strapped ratepayers need is councils wasting money on ineffective, virtue-signalling red tape and climate strategies.”

“Councils should stick to their knitting and focus on delivering what they can actually control: roads, pipes and rubbish. If they won’t get back to basics, then ratepayers are right to go one step further and demand tools like rates capping to force them to.”

The Taxpayers’ Union can reveal through a Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act request that Rotorua Lakes Council—via its Council Controlled Organisation, RotoruaNZ—forked out $93,985 on a television campaign featuring Mayor Tania Tapsell.

The ‘Robe Trip’ campaign, targeting luxury-seeking Auckland couples, cost $42,784 to produce and a further $51,201 to broadcast.

Taxpayers’ Union Investigations Coordinator Rhys Hurley said:

“RotoruaNZ may claim no general rates were used in this production. Yet the targeted business rate means local business already struggling to keep doors open are forced to foot the bill.”

“The campaign was subject to no fewer than 15 rounds of meetings between the agency, Council board, and Mayor’s office.”

“For a city battling infrastructure issues and crime, the time and money spent on this puff piece shows how warped Council priorities have become."

“This campaign might be dressed in a robe, but it’s ratepayer exploitation, plain and simple. RotoruaNZ should be focusing on delivering value, not puff pieces for the Mayor’s profile.”

A mega-merger between Wellington councils is being considered for a non-binding referendum that would combine the services and functions for the five authorities.

“Remember that big council doesn’t mean good council. What we got in Auckland was a cautionary tale; more bureaucracy and empire-building.” said Sam Warren, Local Government Campaigns manager for the Taxpayers’ Union.

“Closer collaboration between neighbouring councils to share costs and service delivery, in order to reduce the burden on ratepayer per capita, is always to be encouraged. Economies of scale is no promise—would this be the exception?”

“Work done by the Infrastructure Commission points towards diminishing returns once a population meets a certain threshold, suggesting that efficiencies from amalgamation are likely captured at relatively modest scales."

“The five councils can barely function by themselves; do we just trust them to ‘make it work’ when they’re inflated even more?”

“If a referendum is to take place, it’s essential that locals are front and centre—the risks and drawbacks are too expensive to get this wrong.”