Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd said the Australian diplomatic service would be “prostituted” if Senator Hill was posted to the UN when he left John Howard’s ministry. Right. Then I presume that whenever the ALP has been in power they never posted their own people to ambassadorial and consulate duties. Yeah….right Somehow managing to keep a straight face, Mr Rudd said such a move would undermine Australia’s diplomatic service.

“If the Howard Government proceeds to appoint Robert Hill to the position of Australia’s permanent representative in New York, this would represent the comprehensive prostitution of Australia’s diplomatic service,” he said. “John Howard needs to learn that the Australian diplomatic (service) is not a Liberal Party employment agency. It is supposed to be a professional operation. And if this action is taken to appoint Robert Hill to New York, it will make a laughing stock of the way in which diplomatic appointments have been made.”

Here’s a couple of ALP politicians appointed as ambassadors by the ALP starting with Whitlam as Ambassador to Unesco in Paris; June 75 Barnard LH (ALP) as Ambassador to Norway, Finland and Sweden after losing at Bass Feb 84 Johnson LR (ALP) resigned and was appointed High Commissioner to NZ. Feb 86 Jenkins HA (ALP) resigned and was appointed Ambassador to Spain. Feb 88 Hurford CJ (ALP) resigned and was appointed Consul-General in New York. Mar 94 Blewett N (ALP) Resigned and was appointed High Commissioner to the UK