The latest Newshub-Reid Research Poll has found voters don't trust the National Party to run the economy - the ground National thinks it owns.
This election year the lolly scramble is not about millions of dollars, it's about billions of dollars, and throwing around that kind of cash requires a whole lot of trust.
Finance Minister Grant Robertson told Newshub the Government has worked hard to earn the trust of Kiwis by spending those billions of dollars carefully.
"We've worked hard to earn the trust of New Zealanders by being careful with our spending," he said on Monday.
With the strong team line in question after an exodus of MPs, National's main pitch is now that it's better at handling the books - and National's finance spokesperson Paul Goldsmith is confident Kiwis trust them.
"New Zealanders do trust National to run the economy effectively," he told Newshub.
But the public doesn't agree.
The latest Newshub-Reid Research Poll asked New Zealanders which party they trust to run the economy from now on through and after COVID-19.
A clear majority - 62.3 percent - trusts a Labour-led Government under Jacinda Ardern, while just over a quarter of the country - 26.5 percent - trusts a National-led Government under Judith Collins.
Goldsmith rejects that National has been arrogant assuming Kiwis trust National to run the economy better and said National has the record to prove it.
"We're very proud of our economic record," he said.
The people of Wellington on Monday said the Government's response to COVID-19 has made Labour more trustworthy to run the economy.
"I totally trust them more after COVID," one man said.
"I view them definitely a lot more favourably over the last couple of months because I think they've handled the crisis very well," another man said.
"I don't think we'd have an economy without Jacinda, so it's kind of case and point, really," a woman told Newshub.
Another man said, "They have run the economy well I think over recent months."
Robertson said the Government has spent money carefully.
"We were very careful. We saved for a rainy day. The rainy day arrived. We've put the umbrella up to protect New Zealanders and I think that's what they want."
They've pulled the rug out from under National. But Goldsmith is still confident National would manage the economy better.
"Yeah, and we will, and we do... We've got plenty of time to have a good contest over the next couple of months."
By this time in the last election campaign the opposition party Labour had released a fully-costed, independently-reviewed alternative Budget.
Goldsmith says he will cost all his policies too, but so far nothing - in fact, what New Zealanders are seeing from National lately is a party not even bothering to put a price tag on massive infrastructure projects.
