I bumped into a mate at the supermarket yesterday and one of the first things he said to me was, “Where’s Christopher Luxon?”. 

And I knew straight away what he was getting at. 

He was echoing the sentiment of political commentators over the weekend who were asking why the Prime Minister isn’t front and centre of the government’s response to the fuel situation. 

Not that Nicola Willis seems to be complaining. She appears to be relishing the opportunity to be the government’s mouthpiece. 

Which is rather unusual given what we’ve become used to in recent years. Particularly since Covid - but we saw it before then too. 

Jacinda Ardern is the most obvious comparison. But John Key, as well. On the day of the big quake, he called an urgent cabinet meeting, then he was straight on a plane to Christchurch. 

Jacinda Ardern was the same after the mosque attacks. She was front and centre when the White Island tragedy happened, and, as we know, she was the face of her government’s Covid response. 

These commentators who were talking about Christopher Luxon over the weekend were making the inevitable comparison to Jacinda Ardern. 

And it’s something I've been thinking about too. 

This fuel situation is Christopher Luxon's opportunity to shine. But, apart from photos on social media of him on the blower to other world leaders talking fuel, that’s about it. 

The rest of the time it’s either Nicola Willis on her own or Nicola Willis with the Prime Minister at her side. 

And I don’t think it’s doing him any favours at all. 

Take Friday, for example. The Prime Minister was in Christchurch for the official opening of the new One New Zealand Stadium - while he let Nicola Willis front the government’s fuel update. 

As one commentator put it: “It is difficult to imagine his predecessors - Ardern, Key or Helen Clark - surrendering such a platform at such a time.” 

Nicola Willis is doing a very good job in front of the fuel response. But, in my mind, she’s doing a job the Prime Minister should be doing. 

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