Minister, don't raid Budget 2026, just scrap the KiwiSaver subsidy

Responding to the Green Party’s claim that Budget 2025 failed to account for up to $714 million in increased KiwiSaver costs across the public sector, Taxpayers’ Union Spokesman James Ross said:

“If there’s a multi-million-dollar hole in the Budget, the answer isn’t to raid Budget 2026, as Nicola Willis has suggested, it’s to find savings. And that starts by scrapping the taxpayer-funded KiwiSaver handout altogether.”

“This $521-a-year giveaway, now halved and means-tested, has already been flagged by both Treasury and Inland Revenue, who recommended scrapping it entirely. It does little to boost real savings and means-testing it now adds a costly administrative mess.”

“Let’s not paper over the problem. If there’s a fiscal hole, the fix is clear: scrap the subsidy before it chews through Budget 2026.”