Politics

Let the Sun Shine In: TINZ calls for more political integrity

Change is urgently needed to raise standards of political integrity and maintain trust in the practice of democracy. There are three priority areas: lobbying regulation, transparency of political donations and reduction in the use of urgency.

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Time to Raise the Bar: The Case for a Positive Test for Urgency in New Zealand Parliament

Using urgency as a default legislative strategy — treating a parliamentary majority as a substitute for deliberation, or rushing complex legislation through simply because a government can is not acceptable.

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Get Lobbying into the Sunlight

Professional lobbying has grown significantly in New Zealand since the 1980s, yet regulation has not kept pace. While lobbying can contribute to public policy, the absence of clear rules has enabled practices that undermine public confidence.

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The Queensland Model – Real-Time Political Funding

In Queensland, candidates are required to disclose donations in real time. New Zealand would benefit from a similar regime

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Parliament calls out government for being hard to understand — and charts a way forward

A landmark report from a cross-party Committee says New Zealanders deserve much clearer information about what the government is doing with their money.

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Modern Slavery Bill

As currently drafted, the Bill is an important step to overcome stalled progress on modern slavery legislation in New Zealand. but we have concerns with aspects of the current drafting and believe the Bill can be strengthened further to provide a more effective framework for addressing modern slavery.

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New Zealand Takes on Modern Slavery: What the New Bill Means — and What's Missing

Transparency International New Zealand has made a submission to Parliament on the Modern Slavery Bill 2026, broadly welcoming the legislation while urging significant strengthening before it becomes law.

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Pacific Partnership Environmental Research Project

TINZ is continuing its work across the Pacific through a new ‘Access to Environmental Information’ research project that focuses on information available on fisheries in Fiji and extractives in Solomon Islands.

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Let the sun shine in

Our “Let the Sun Shine In” series will spotlight the urgent need for openness in political funding, lobbying, and disclosure ahead of this year’s general election.

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Let the sun shine in: A call for greater integrity in politics

Transparency International New Zealand calls on parliamentarians and political parties to re-affirm their support for essential democratic processes.

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Let the sun shine in on political party funding

Political donation reform is urgently needed. Weak donation laws, high disclosure thresholds, and limited enforcement powers create opportunities for undue influence and erode confidence in political institutions.

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Speech by Dr Salome Taufa, Director of Governance and Engagement, Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat on behalf of the Secretary-General of the Pacific Islands Forum

As the Pacific continues to navigate a more uncertain and demanding regional and global environment we will need institutions that are trusted, leadership that is principled and policies that are informed by facts and evidence.

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Reflections for the Democracy Forum

A fundamental question is how New Zealand’s model of parliamentary democracy can adapt and remain resilient in the social media age. This was a key point raised by Sir Peter Gluckman from The Centre for Informed Futures and President of the International Science Council in thoughts submitted for the recent Democracy Forum discussions.

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Let the sun shine in on political party funding

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TINZ Submission to the Justice Select Committee Inquiry into 2025 Local Authority Election

It appears from the 2025 election that local government elections are under active threat of increased corrupt behaviour. The integrity systems currently in place are showing their age. They need review and realignment to enable the full implementation of the principles of the Local Electoral Act 2001.

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Let People Vote

Several of the government’s proposed changes to electoral law in the Electoral Amendment Bill will undermine the right to vote for some of our citizens

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Let’s Level the Lobbying Playing Field - Campaign Launch

Transparency International New Zealand has joined a campaign led by Health Coalition Aotearoa and including the Helen Clark Foundation, pushing for stronger measures towards political integrity through transparency, ethical standards and accountability.

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Standards for integrity in political finance: A global policy position

In December Transparency International, our parent organization, released a report setting out standards for integrity in political finance.

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Getting the “inside” scoop on policy capture

Lisa Marriott and Max Rashbrooke from the School of Government, VUW are undertaking research about how powerful groups shift democratic decision-making away from public good. They want to hear about experiences from people with an inside perspective.

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