Global General

Australian former PM Kevin Rudd lands UN job

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-08-10 09:41

CANBERRA - Australian former prime minister Kevin Rudd has been appointed to a United Nations (UN) panel on global sustainability, the UN confirmed on Tuesday.

Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, pictured in Sydney in early June. [Agencies]

A statement from the UN headquarters in New York said UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon has announced the panel's main aim will be to help lift people out of poverty.

As well as Rudd, the panel includes other politicians from around the world including the former prime ministers of Norway, South Korea, Japan and Mozambique.

The panel has been tasked with producing a report by the end of next year.

Meanwhile, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has guaranteed Rudd will be given a senior front-bench position if Labor Party wins the August 21 general election, but the Opposition has questioned whether Rudd can do both jobs.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott said Gillard must now explain what role Rudd would play in any future Labor cabinet.

"This is an official appointment to a serious UN panel that is going to involve significant time out of Australia," Abbott told ABC Network on Tuesday.

But Rudd has said the position is only part-time and would only involve travel overseas for a few meetings a year.

Rudd is now officially on the campaign trail for Labor Party after last week declaring that he could not sit by to watch Abbott "slide into office" by default.