As talk of raising taxes circulates yet again, ordinary, hardworking, taxpaying eN-Zedders are right to ask: Is more tax really necessary? Or is the real issue that our Government spends too much, and too foolishly?
Take this: $4.3 million of taxpayer money is being spent on research claiming that whale sounds might help save kauri trees. This is not satire. It’s a real grant, driven more by ideology than evidence, aiming to explore a theory tied to Māori cosmology. While it’s important to honour our heritage, most eN-Zedders would agree this is not what urgent, science-based conservation funding looks like. Or Whānau Ora giving $770,000 to the Moana Pacifica rugby franchise (allegedly). That’s just wrong.
Meanwhile, economists are sounding alarms. As Shamubeel Eaqub explains, if spending doesn’t change, tax increases — or a broader tax base — may be inevitable. The IRD has clearly warned that our current system isn’t sustainable without tough choices. But here’s a radical idea: make smarter spending choices instead.
Instead of pouring millions into speculative or ideologically driven projects, why not direct funds to areas with measurable public benefit? Core infrastructure. Health. Education. Justice. Every dollar frittered away on fringe projects is a dollar not spent where it’s truly needed — and a dollar more the Government will later try to claw back from everyday eN-Zedders.
Raising taxes may seem like the easy answer, but it’s not the right one. We are people, not ATMs. As the gap between company tax and personal income tax grows, we risk damaging productivity and hurting small businesses — all to cover for bureaucratic silliness.
No one likes paying tax. But most of us accept it when the spending is fair and focused. Until Government departments rein in wasteful, ideologically driven spending, it’s time to say: don’t raise our taxes — raise your standards.
eN-Zed 