Dear
Friend,
I am
delighted to be able to share with you the Taxpayers’
Union's 2024/25
Annual Review and Campaign Plan for 2025.
Flicking
through it, I’m sure you will agree that we can be incredibly proud of
what Jordan, James, Michelle, Amber and the team are achieving,
despite our relatively small size. After all, without you, the
Taxpayers' Union would not be possible.
2024 in
review
With so
many of the voices you see in the media (and those paid to lobby
politicians) entirely taxpayer funded, the Taxpayers' Union provides
the balance. Everything
you read in the Annual Review was made possible by the goodwill of the
tens of thousands of New Zealanders who have chipped-in with a
membership or donation.
And I think
the report demonstrates that it's been put to good use! From the huge
win on the Te Mana O Te Wai issue (which would have imposed
co-governance of water management/environmental policies across all
councils) to the successful campaign for referendum safeguards on
Māori wards (ensuring that the rules of local elections are ultimately
in the hands of voters not the politicians) the Taxpayers'
Union has bravely fought for democratic accountability in the areas
where the media often do not tread.
And again
it was the Taxpayers' Union who held the IRD to account after it was
revealed that tax officials had shared unencrypted taxpayer data with
overseas tech companies. Thanks to the pressure applied, the full
extent of this breach was forced to be uncovered: IRD now admit that
268,000 New Zealanders had their privacy breached. This is precisely
why a voice for taxpayers is so important!
Meanwhile,
the Union's exposé on the Health Research Council and the Marsden
Fund's wasteful spending forced the Government to respond and narrow
the scope of the fund criteria to ensure taxpayer dollars are spent
where they’re truly needed.
These
successes remind us why the Taxpayers' Union is so
vital.
The achievements you’ll see in the report are the
fruits of tireless work and bucket loads of passion. When I speak to
the Board members, or pay a visit into the office, it is clear that
every member of the team – and our volunteers – really loves what they
do.
The year ahead
But let's
not kid ourselves that a prosperous future of New Zealand is yet
secured. As was laid bare with the opening of the Government's books
the week before Christmas, 2025 is make-or-break. The country is in
the longest per-capita recession since records began, our productivity
has flatlined, and local government is still an absolute mess.
Sadly,
there's just so much more to be done.
Friend,
even the Taxpayers' Union can't save the world if they can’t keep the
lights on. To
keep the momentum going, will you chip-in with a donation so the good
work can continue?
Thank you
for making the work of the Taxpayers' Union possible.
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David Farrar Co-founder New Zealand Taxpayers' Union
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PS. If
you have trouble reading the report online, click
here to download the PDF.
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