Book of the Week: 'DIRTY WORK: The Taxpayers' Union and New Zealand's Hard Right' by Nicky Hager
In 2023 Nicky Hager was accused of writing an exposé of the Taxpayers' Union when he was not in fact writing an exposé of the Taxpayers' Union. This prompted insiders to approach him with information that led to him writing an exposé of the Taxpayers' Union and the wider spiderweb of lobby groups and astroturf organisations that have been working to push political discourse in New Zealand to the right and to smear and discredit those who oppose them. Driven by wealthy New Zealanders, Big Tobacco, corporate and other interests, and aligned with the Atlas Network internationally, the Taxpayers’ Union has been particularly effective in nudging ACT and the National Party towards espousing their hard-right goals and rhetoric, from dismantling public services to removing restictions on the operations of corporations. Hager reveals how the Taxpayers’ Union deliberately introduced race-based politics as a politcal lever, first to derail Three Waters on behalf of business interests and then to undermine democracy and weaken protections for the environment. Although Christopher Luxon is quoted as saying, “Can I just say up front, thanks to you and all your members for all the work you do. … I really like what you guys do,” not everyone towards the right is enamoured by the Taxpayers’ Union’s operations: this book is based on interviews with former members, employees, and other insiders.