Part 4/14:

Founded in 2004, the Taxpayers Alliance (TPA) is a campaign group dedicated to advocating for lower taxes, smarter spending, and greater government accountability across the UK. It emerged at a time when the New Labour government was expanding public spending, especially post-2003, coinciding with a period when Britain’s public finances briefly returned to surplus.

The organization’s founders, including Matthew Elliot—later associated with Vote Leave—recognized the need for a sustained campaign to challenge wasteful government expenditure and high taxation. Starting with a simple tactic—collecting wasteful spending stories and tallying them up—they gained media traction, notably in 2006 with their coverage in The Sun, highlighting the scale of government waste.