By: Barry Soper | Thursday, February 23, 2012 6:00 AM

Perhaps Labour's man with the gait of a gunslinger knows something that we should all know. He may have a gunslinger gait but of course David Cunliffe wasn't quick enough on the draw when it came to the Labour leadership.

He was dumped from his shadow finance portfolio, but Cunliffe's doing his best to rebuild his political career and impress his new leader who's given him the economic development portfolio which for years was the baby of Parliament's retired grandfather bear Saint Jim Anderton.

This former Harvard graduate sets out to make a mark with his leaders. It was Dead Girl Helen who brought him into her ministry which planted the seed of ambition.

When she suddenly stepped down immediately after losing the election in 2008, Cunliffe's heart skipped a beat. But the frothing Phil Goff, who'd been the best man but never the groom for many years, was always going to get the nod and the gunslinger bided his time.

When the electorate showed little enthusiasm for the career politician Goff, the Labour leadership was up for grabs but there were two Davids too many and the Shearer fleeced them.

It was back to the drawing board for Cunliffe and he's been beavering away to make an impression in his new portfolio.

A couple of weeks back he had his opposite Tory number, the minister of everything Steven Joyce scratching his head. Cunliffe fired off a written question to the Economic Development Minister asking him how many bureaucrats in his department earned more than $100 million a year, if any.

Yep you've read right, the numerals can't be confused, a one followed by eight zeros, no mistake about it.

Joyce rightly wondered what experience Cunliffe had in his stint with an economic development portfolio in the Clark ministry, but he assured him there were no employees in that league these days.

The minister added that if Cunliffe did know of someone with such a swollen pay packet, he'd appreciate names.

A cowering Cunliffe's gone back to his calculator!