Kevin Rudd, who quit on Wednesday as foreign minister of Australia, is all set to challenge Prime Minister Julia Gillard. In a fight to regain the leadership of the ruling Labor party, Rudd gained the support of Infrastructure and Transport Minister Anthony Albanese. The decision of Anthony to back Rudd is considered a setback for Gillard.
Last day Rudd called for a leadership vote and said Julia has lost trust of the Australian people. In a press conference on Friday Rudd, a former prime minister during 2007 to 2010, said, "I want to finish the job the Australian people elected me to do when they elected me to become prime minister."
Rudd accused that a spin machine of faceless men is working for smear campaign and character assassination. He has also alleged that Gillard could not lead the party to an election victory.
Meanwhile, Julia Gillard announced a ballot for the ruling Labor leadership. The voting on Monday would decide the new leader. If she looses, Gillard said she would retire to the backbench and asked Rudd to do the same.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.