Posted in NEWS by NZTU Media | September 1, 2026
After promising to answer questions by the end of Monday, Public Service Commissioner Sir Brian Roche has still not addressed basic questions about his controversial decision to keep the Parliamentary liar Nic Blakeley as the boss at MBIE.Taxpayers’ Union Executive Director Jordan Williams said,...
Read more about Roche breaks own promise for transparency on Blakeley resignationPosted in NEWS by NZTU Media | August 30, 2026
The Taxpayers’ Union says Labour is close to hitting the nail on the head with its calls for greater transparency over spending on Premier House, but must now commit the same principle to Parliament itself.Taxpayers’ Union Investigative Lead Rhys Hurley, said:“Labour is right that...
Read more about Labour’s Premier House Transparency Calls Hollow Till It Backs Opening Parliamentary BooksPosted in NEWS by NZTU Media | August 18, 2026
Responding to claims that Lyttelton Port Company has kept workers “out of the loop” on its $800 million upgrade plans, Taxpayers’ Union spokesperson Tory Relf said:“If LGOIMA applied to Lyttelton Port Company, workers, unions and Christchurch ratepayers could all have used it to demand...
Read more about Lyttelton Port Company needs full disclosurePosted in NEWS by NZTU Media | June 30, 2026
The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union is calling for the Governor-General and Government House to be brought under the Official Information Act, following King Charles’ decision to disclose his personal tax bill.Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Austin Ellingham-Banks said:“Buckingham Palace says the King’s unprecedented tax disclosure reflects...
Read more about If the King can commit to transparency, so can Government HousePosted in NEWS by NZTU Media | June 19, 2025
The Taxpayers’ Union is slamming IRD and Statistics NZ after the Government announced it’s scrapping the Census and replacing it with a mass data-harvest from across government departments without public consent.IRD will share sensitive personal data like income and benefit details that must be linkable...
Read more about Minister Watts Silent Again as Taxpayer Data-Grab Replaces CensusPosted in NEWS by New Zealand Taxpayers' Union | June 11, 2014
The Taxpayers’ Union has been provided a copy of a leaked report Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) commissioned. The report was prepared in response to work by the Taxpayers’ Union to improve transparency in local government. Earlier today Ratepayers’ Report – interactive local government...
Read more about Leaked report shows efforts LGNZ making to protect poor performing councilsPosted in NEWS by New Zealand Taxpayers' Union | June 11, 2014
The Taxpayers’ Union, in collaboration with Fairfax Media, this morning launched "Ratepayers’ Report” hosted by Stuff.co.nz. Ratepayers’ Report builds on the work of local government expert and financial analyst, Larry Mitchell and his work in previous years comparing New Zealand’s 67 territorial authorities....
Read more about Ratepayers' ReportPosted in NEWS by New Zealand Taxpayers' Union | February 25, 2014
We now have more details of the deal uncovered by the Taxpayers’ Union over the weekend between Dunedin’s Mayor Dave Cull and former MP, Pete Hodgson, which the Mayor described in the media as a “gentleman’s agreement”. This morning’s Christchurch Press editorial analyses the deal: Editorial: Gentlemen sign...
Read more about Update on Dunedin Mayor’s “Gentleman’s agreement”Posted in NEWS by New Zealand Taxpayers' Union | February 24, 2014
This morning the Taxpayers’ Union went public with material concerning a payment (or payments) totalling $3,400 by the Dunedin City Council to former MP Pete Hogdson with no documentation or contract. We're questioning the internal controls at the Council after the uncovering the payment following a...
Read more about Payments by Dunedin City Council to former MP with no documentationPosted in NEWS by New Zealand Taxpayers' Union | February 18, 2014
The Taxpayer’s Union has discovered that the 'Fizz' group of academics campaigning for a ‘sugar tax’ on soft drinks appears to have been falsely claiming the endorsement of the Health Research Council of New Zealand (HRC). A group of academics who have received a lot of publicity...
Read more about Fizz using Health Research Council's logo without permission