Willie Apiata VC speaking to the public. Photo / Sarah Ivey
Willie Apiata VC speaking to the public. Photo / Sarah Ivey
Northland doctor rockets into No 2 spot but politicians as trustworthy as sex workers
Politicians are as trustworthy as sex workers and Willie Apiata, VC, is - again - the most trusted of all New Zealanders, according to an annual survey on the country's most trusted people and professions.
The 10th annual New Zealand Reader's Digest Trust Survey revealed a skew towards sports stars and emergency service workers as those whom Kiwis put the most faith in.
Mr Apiata took out the top spot as the most trusted of 100 well-known Kiwis, followed by Northland doctor and champion of Maori health care Lance O'Sullivan and All Blacks captain Richie McCaw.
Image 1 of 10: 10: Peter Snell, former athlete. Photo / Paul Estcourt
Mr Apiata also won the accolade in 2008, 2009 and 2010, making him the most trusted Kiwi since the survey's inception.
Firefighters, paramedics, rescue volunteers and nurses were the five most trusted of 50 professions, while politicians, sex workers, door-to-door salespeople and telemarketers were at the opposite end of the list. Journalists were 43rd, between call centre workers and real estate agents.
Politicians didn't fare well in the trustworthy people stakes either with Hone Harawira, Kim Dotcom, Michael Laws, David Cunliffe and Winston Peters at the bottom of the list.
Prime Minister John Key came in at 86th, a drop from his position at 80 last year.
Mr Apiata said he felt honoured by the award and thanked those who voted for him.
"I am always humbled by the continued support of our fellow New Zealanders," he said.
Fire Service deputy national commander Paul McGill said: "It is good to see the public places a high value on the dedication all firefighters have to public safety."
He said most of the country's 10,000 firefighters were volunteers.
St John chief executive Peter Bradley said it was "fabulous" to see emergency services featuring strongly in the survey.
"Our paramedics are in the unique position of going into people's homes and places of work to help them at times of great need so to have earned the public's trust and confidence ... is an excellent validation of the approach we are taking."
The Reader's Digest journalist who covers the survey, Monique Balvert-O'Connor, said it was a testament to Dr O'Sullivan's community work that he was propelled to second place - the first time he had ever featured in the list.
"New Zealanders are stuck on Willie Apiata. It's not so surprising when you look at the calibre of his character, but what is surprising is when you have someone coming from the cold and going straight into second place ... [Dr O'Sullivan] skyrocketed up there."
Balvert-O'Connor said Kiwis believed that people who were successful in their fields and who contributed to the community were the most trustworthy.
"They are people who do really well and you see them as being on your side rather than on someone else's side or on their own side."
The annual survey is conducted by Catalyst Consultancy & Research, which polled more than 600 people on how they rated and trusted a list of Kiwi newsmakers on a scale of one to 10.
Other notable New Zealanders on the list included Lorde at 61.
1. Willie Apiata VC, solider 2. Lance O'Sullivan, doctor, 2014 New Zealander of the Year 3. Richie McCaw, All Blacks' captain 4. Judy Bailey, charity worker 5. John Kirwan, former All Black player 6. Kevin Milne, former TV host 7. Valerie Adams (formerly Vili), shot-putter 8. Jim Hickey, TV weather presenter 9. Alison Holst, food writer 10. Peter Snell, former athlete 11. Peter Leitch, businessman, charity worker 12. Jerry Mateparae, Governor-General 13. Peter Jackson, film director 13. Dan Carter, All Black player 15. Sarah Ulmer, cyclist 15. Colin Meads, former All Black 17. Sam Johnson, leader of Student Volunteer Army 18. Hamish Bond, rower, Olympic gold medalist 18. Brian Lochore, former All Black captain and coach 20. John Campbell, TV journalist 21. Graham Henry, former All Black coach 21. Dave Dobbyn, musician 23. Mike McRoberts, TV journalist 23. Mahe Drysdale, rower 23. John Walker, former athlete 23. Jo Seagar, chef 27. Toni Street, TV presenter 27. Nigel Latta, psychologist 27. Stephen Tindall, businessman 30. Lisa Carrington, rower 31. Eric Murray, rower, Olympic gold medallist 32. Ian Grant, parenting expert 33. Sian Elias, chief justice of New Zealand 33. Sue Chetwin, CEO Consumer NZ 35. Sir Ray Avery, scientist, businessman and philanthropist 36. Dean Barker, yachtsman and Team NZ skipper 36. Neil Finn, musician 36. Simon Barnett, TV and radio presenter 36. Simon Dallow, TV presenter 36. Annabel Langbein, cookbook author, TV personality 36. Brendon McCallum, Black Caps captain 36. Rhys Darby, actor, comedian 36. Pippa Wetzell, TV host 44. Scott Dixon, IndyCar driver 45. Stephen Donald, All Black player 46. Peter Gluckman, scientist 47. The Topp Twins, entertainers 48. Susan Devoy, Race Relations Commissioner 49. Peta Mathias, chef 50. Simon Gault, chef 51. Bret McKenzie, comedian, musician 51. Jemaine Clement, comedian, musician 51. Jim Mora, radio personality 54. John Graham, former All Black, educator 55. Richard Taylor, filmmaker 56. Helen Clark, former Prime Minister 57. Jonah Lomu, former All Black 58. Kiri Te Kanawa, opera singer 59. Robyn Malcolm, actor 60. Te Radar, comedian, TV personality 61. Ella Yelich-O'Connor (Lorde), singer 62. Garth McVicar, Sensible Sentencing Trust spokesman 62. Polly Gillespie, radio personality 64. Tony Kokshoorn, Grey District Mayor 65. Chris Cairns, former cricketer 66. Ruben Wiki, former rugby league player 67. Wendyl Nissen, columnist and author 68. Mary Holm, financial writer and newspaper columnist 69. Rosie Horton, philanthropist 69. Anne Salmond, writer, anthropologist 71. Lucy Lawless, actor 72. Lianne Dalziel, Christchurch mayor 73. Kim Hill, radio journalist 74. Alan Gibbs, entrepreneur 75. Mike Hosking, TV and radio journalist 76. Marcus Lush, TV and radio personality 76. Lockwood Smith NZ High Commissioner to UK 78. Alan Bollard, former governor of the Reserve Bank of NZ 79. Grant Kereama, radio personality 79. Leighton Smith, radio personality 79. Mike Bush, Police Commissioner 79. Graeme Hart, businessman 79. Billy Graham, motivational speaker 79. Mai Chen, lawyer 85. James Wallace, businessman, philanthropist 86. John Key, Prime Minister 87. Gareth Morgan, philanthropist, businessman 88. Gary Taylor, environmentalist 89. Bob Jones, businessman 90. Pita Sharples, Minister of Maori Affairs 91. Metiria Turei, Green Party co-leader 91. Russel Norman, Green Party co-leader 93. Michael Fay, businessman 94. Matt McCarten, Labour chief of staff 94. Bunny McDiarmid, Greenpeace executive director 96. Winston Peters, New Zealand First leader 97. David Cunliffe, Labour Party leader 98. Michael Laws, former Wanganui Mayor 99. Kim Dotcom, internet entrepreneur 100. Hone Harawira, Mana Party leader
