In a year of wacky polls and debate, we have this morning probably the maddest result of all.

Horizon research has either asked a leading or confusing question, or they have a misrepresentative group of people. Or the people who answered have other things in mind when they answered because the poll is about the fuel crisis.

Now the fuel "crisis", such as it is, has not actually been a crisis. You might argue in price it has, but it's peaked and the fears of $200 a barrel never happened and never came close.

The major worry, which lasted mainly in the minds of the thick and bewildered, was supply. Would we run out? Now that really would have been a crisis.

But here is the reality – we didn’t run out. We were never going to run out and surely by now with the myriad of updates on storage and tankers it is abundantly clear we will be fine.

Yet, here is your poll: 24% have no confidence at all in the Government to manage what they have already managed.

32% have not very much confidence. So collectively that's 56%.

How is it possible to say you don’t have confidence in an event that is already sorted?

Unless, and here is where the poll might be an example of something to be wary of closer to the election, by “manage” do the 56% mean they wanted tax off, wanted a handout, wanted a price cap? So in not doing that to a larger extent than they did, is that failing to manage a crisis?

The poll does not tell us this, mainly because it didn’t ask.

Is the crisis about supply of petrol or the cost of it?

And if it is about the cost of it, you not only have to ask about that, you then presumably have to follow up with a "what sort of support did you want?" type question. "How much would have been acceptable?"

We know from Australia that they have handed out a fortune in freebies and people love them.

There was one poll here that asked, "would you like a handout even if it meant a smaller Government tax take or a bigger debt pile" and the vast majority said yes please.

So my view of this Government handling of the so-called "crisis" is they have done an exemplary job and one that has been recognised globally.

But I didn’t want free money. If this poll truly represents the average New Zealand view of debt and the economy and political responsibility, then the Government is toast and we are on our way to third world status.

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