Is tax theft or is it love? A nannystate or democratic government in action? Many of us want to pay as little as possible yet our panel argues that taxes are vital to our society – pooling our resources to give us schools and hospitals and all the myriad services and infrastructure that make this country work. Lisa Marriott is Professor of Taxation at Victoria University. Her research interests include social justice and inequality, and the behavioural aspects of taxation. Max Rashbrooke is a journalist, author and academic based in Wellington. His books, led by the best-selling Inequality: A New Zealand Crisis, have helped transform our understanding of income and wealth inequality. Shamubeel Eaqub is a consultant at Sense Partners. His focus is on analytical frameworks to aid economic forecasting, on commentary and incisive research into topical areas of economics. He has a knack for coining memorable terms: zombie towns, generation rent and of course, tax is love.