Keeping Rudd out of Gillard's hair

It is reasonable to assume that the Opposition will step up its objections to government tactics in Parliament despite all the talk about procedural reform, resulting in a far greater number of divisions.

Oakeshott wisely turned down Gillard’s offer for a slot in her new ministry saying he would bring too much baggage and political heat with him. Perhaps he could smell the fires of disenchantment burning in his electorate.

Meanwhile Gillard’s decision to honour her campaign promise to hand Kevin Rudd the Foreign Affairs Ministry may boost the former Prime Minister’s ego but it will not be greeted with rapturous applause by the bureaucracy. Rudd’s lack of popularity within the Labor Party was echoed through the corridors of the foreign service.

Under his micromanagement of the Labor government following the 2007 election, Foreign Affairs wallowed in a policy vacuum while Rudd strutted the world stage. This led to his predecessor Stephen Smith - who moves to Defence to make way for Rudd - being dubbed in diplomatic circles as “the messenger for Foreign Affairs”.

Rudd has made much of his ability to speak Mandarin. But, despite a stint in the Australian Embassy in Beijing some years ago, he clearly lacks an understanding of Chinese culture and diplomacy. Under his leadership diplomatic relations with China, and Japan for that matter, slumped. And his diplomatic foray into the Copenhagen climate change conference at the head of a small army of bureaucrats was a costly and humiliating disaster.

The portfolio will keep Rudd out of Gillard’s hair domestically. While it is still early days Gillard has shown no interest in international policy. At the same time both Gillard and Rudd have, in the past, delegated subordinates to attend meetings of the National Security Committee which she now heads as Prime Minister.

The broad scope of foreign policy is a critical part of government administration and as such has to be driven from the top. But while Gillard cannot allow Rudd to run his own foreign policy race she similarly cannot allow this vital area to become part of the policy gridlock that typified the operations of the Prime Minister’s office under its former tenant.