Whining OZschwitz Statists: Rudd showed "casual disregard" for national security

Former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd treated Cabinet's national security committee with "casual disregard" and sometimes had his 31-year-old chief of staff deputise for him at meetings of the highly sensitive body, ABC TV reported tonight.

The ABC quoted unnamed Commonwealth officials and Cabinet sources as saying they had been shocked at Mr Rudd's attitude to the committee, which is the key Cabinet body which makes decisions on defence and national security issues.

Mr Rudd had missed some meetings of the committee and on other occasions had kept it waiting or sent his chief of staff, Alister Jordan, to deputise for him.

The report will be seized on by the Opposition in the election campaign to question Labor's credentials on national security and to keep the focus on the bitterness inside Labor following the ousting of Mr Rudd by Julia Gillard just weeks ago.

Ms Gillard was a member of the NSC in her capacity as deputy prime minister.

In addition to the Prime Minister and the deputy PM, members of the NSC also include the defence minister, the Attorney-General and the Treasurer.

It deals with critical issues including decisions to take part in armed conflict and its meetings are often attended by the Chief of the Defence Force and the heads of intelligence agencies like ASIO.

The ABC's report comes as tensions have been mounting within Labor over how Ms Gillard's election campaign efforts have been overshadowed by reports about Mr Rudd in the last few days.

ABC 24's political editor, Chris Uhlmann, said Commonwealth officials had told the ABC that the way the national security committee had been treated by Mr Rudd was emblematic of the chaotic nature of his government.

Uhlmann said officials had been "appalled" and believed the national security committee's work had been compromised by Mr Rudd's attitude.

"One senior official said that in 30 years [of involvement] he could not remember a Prime Minister treating [the committee] with such disdain," Uhlmann reported.

But the ABC said Cabinet sources had told it that Mr Rudd had been present at the national security committee for all critical decisions.

LNK

Whining OZschwitz Statists: Rudd showed "casual disregard" for national security

Whining OZschwitz Statists: Rudd showed "casual disregard" for national security

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