Australia’s Rudd refers to himself as PM in gaffe

SYDNEY — Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd did little to hose down speculation that he wanted his old job back when he referred to himself as prime minister in a radio interview.

Rudd was dumped as leader in a shock Labor Party coup led by his then-deputy Julia Gillard in June 2010, but talk of a return to the top job has been rife in recent weeks.

It follows opinion polls showing support for Gillard at record lows. One poll for the Sydney Morning Herald this month had 44 percent of those questioned favouring Rudd as Labor leader, compared to Gillard’s 19 percent.

Asked about recent polls, Rudd on Tuesday said on ABC radio: “You know what? I’m a happy little vegemite being Prime Minister.”

He then corrected his title to Foreign Minister and blamed jet lag for the gaffe.

“Your question was about being Prime Minister — there, you’ve caught me getting off a plane being jet-lagged,” said Rudd, who has a famously strained relationship with Gillard.

“And as for the Prime Minister, as I said before and said in the United States, I fully support the Prime Minister.”

The opposition jumped on the slip-up.

“It’s something that is on Kevin Rudd’s mind,” said opposition leader Tony Abbott.

“I think that every day since his political assassination Kevin Rudd has thought about going back into the top job and I think this is a real problem for the Labor party.”

Copyright © 2011 AFP. All rights reserved.
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