Matua Kahurangi: Show us the receipts - Some MPs are burning more cash than they earn

There is a simple way to restore public confidence in how MPs spend taxpayer money. Publish fully itemised expenses, every quarter, for every MP. Line by line. No summaries. No vague categories. No hiding behind Parliamentary Service.

In New Zealand, an ordinary backbench MP earns around $168,600 a year, set by the independent Remuneration Authority. That salary is already scheduled to rise to about $181,200 this year in 2026. That is a solid income by any normal Kiwi standard. Most people earning that sort of money would be expected to manage their own travel and accommodation carefully.

However, some MPs are blowing through more than their annual salary again in expenses, and the public is expected to shrug and move on.

Take Rawiri Waititi. His Parliamentary Service expenditure clocks in at roughly $273,000 a year. That is over $100,000 more than his actual salary. The taxpayer is paying more to fund his travel and perks than to pay him to do the job.

So what has he achieved in Parliament to justify that level of spending. Serious legislation. Structural reform. Tangible outcomes. Anything at all.

Whūk all - nothing. He’s taking the piss at your expense.

What the public does get is a steady stream of theatrics. Cowboy hats. Air Jordan sneakers. Performative politics dressed up as substance. Plenty of mileage, very little movement.

Then there is Hūhana Lyndon, Who managed to spend around $240,000. And you would be forgiven for asking who. She rarely fronts cameras. She is virtually invisible in public debate. No major achievements. No defining moments. No obvious impact. I think it’s best to shorten her name to Hū, from now on.

Yet the spending is right up there with the worst offenders.

If a private company employee racked up that level of expenses while delivering nothing, they would be shown the door. In Parliament, it barely raises an eyebrow.

The problem is not just the money. It is the secrecy.

MPs do not publish itemised expenses. The public does not get to see what flights were taken, what hotels were booked, how often, or why. Everything is bundled up into neat totals and released long after the fact.

That is not transparency. That is deliberate opacity.

If MPs knew that every coffee, flight upgrade, hotel stay and rental car would be published online every three months with their name on it, spending would drop overnight. Behaviour always changes when sunlight is applied.

Do New Zealanders have the right to know exactly how their money is being spent by the people they employ. Of course they do. If MPs want trust, they should stop asking for it and start earning it. Publish the receipts. Every quarter. Every MP. Until then, do not be surprised when the public assumes the worst.

Matua Kahurangi is just a bloke sharing thoughts on New Zealand and the world beyond. No fluff, just honest takes. He blogs on https://matuakahurangi.com/ where this article was sourced