Taxpayers’ Union Three Waters campaign driven by donation surge, Nanaia Mahuta says lobby group has ‘rotten stench’.

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Nicky Hager alleges the Taxpayers’ Union pushed deeper into Māori and co-governance politics after its Three Waters campaign delivered a surge in supporters and donations, triggering an internal fight that ended with chairman Ashley Church resigning. David Fisher reports.

The Taxpayers’ Union pushed hard into Māori and co-governance politics after finding its Three Waters campaign was generating huge numbers of supporters and donations, Nicky Hager’s new book claims.

Former staff quoted by Hager describe executive director Jordan Williams watching the campaign’s growth and asking: “How can we make money from this?”

They later described donations “pouring in like a pokie machine”.