Australia's Most Trusted 2008

Top Guns... When Your In A Pinch

Trust all depends on the particular situation. To test this theory, we decided to have a bit of fun: we gave our respondents ten names from our trust list and asked them to pick the person they'd depend on most in each of ten situations - some of them silly, some serious.

The ten famous people covered a broad range of ages, professions and backgrounds: Cate Blanchett, David Koch, Kerri-Anne Kennerley, Kevin Rudd, Brendan Nelson, Kylie Minogue, Kyle Sandilands, Queen Elizabeth II, Russell Crowe and the Chaser boys.

The results reveal that trust is connected to perceptions of both character and expertise, says Rebecca Huntley. "Women are looking for expertise and responsibility, whereas men seem to opting for fun at some level."

Who would you trust to look after your house while you’re away?
Kerri-Anne Kennerley came first overall, although males were significantly more inclined to allow Kyle Sandilands to house-sit for them.

Who would you trust to pack your parachute?
David Koch would be most trusted, followed (rather unexpectedly) by Kevin Rudd and Brendan Nelson.

Who would you trust to pay back a $1000 loan?
A quarter of Australians say David Koch is the best bet to pay his debts.

Who would you trust to look after your children?
Cate Blanchett came up trumps. Males were significantly more likely to want the Queen or the Chaser boys to look after their kids.

Who would you trust to tell you your bum looks big in those jeans?
For those looking for a frank assessment, Kyle Sandilands is considered the most likely to shoot from the hip.

Who would you trust to keep an embarrassing secret?
The Queen garnered 27% overall and 30% of all females (significantly higher than males). Given the choice, our voters wouldn’t tell Russell Crowe their secrets: he was judged the least likely to keep his lips sealed.

Who would you trust to have your e-mail password?
The Queen was deemed the person you would most trust with the secrets of your inbox, and Russell Crowe the least preferred.

Who would you trust to give you the kiss of life?
As expected, men and women have different preferences. For men, the clear winner is Kylie Minogue. Russell Crowe narrowly won the female vote, just beating off the Chaser boys.

Who would you trust to borrow your new car for the weekend?
Brendan Nelson would get the car keys from 20% of us, while 17% would toss them to Kevin Rudd. Only 3% of us would trust Russell Crowe.

Who would you trust to back you up in a pub fight? Russell Crowe is your man: 73% of men opted for the Gladiator star – significantly higher than the 53% of females.