Kevin Rudd

Prime Minister of Australia (3 December 2007 - 24 June 2010) (26 June 2013 - 18 September 2013).

Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs (14 September 2010 - 22 February 2012).

He is the first former prime minister to have returned to the office since Robert Menzies in 1949.

Rudd and his wife Thrse Rein have three children: Jessica , Nicholas , and Marcus , and one granddaughter, Josephine (born 2012); Josephine is the daughter of Jessica and her husband Albert Tse, whom she married in 2007.

Australians are a passionate lot. We are also a very practical lot.

The Apology opened the opportunity for a new relationship based on,mutual respect and mutual responsibility between Indigenous and,non-Indigenous Australia. Because without mutual respect and mutual,responsibility, the truth is we can achieve very little.

2009 was a tough year, but Australia rose to the challenge of the global,financial crisis. It shows what can be done when we all join together,and work together, governments of all persuasions state, territory and,local; businesses large and small; unions and local communities right,across the nation.

Australia is a nation of compassion. Courage and compassion. And the,third of these great values: resilience.

Building a new Health and Hospitals Network is fundamental to building a,stronger and fairer Australia.

If Australia wants an effective United Nations, we have to be,comprehensively, not marginally, engaged.

It is a high honour to be elected Prime Minister of Australia.

We are moving toward recognition of the first Australians in the,Australian constitution.

A core challenge for Australia is - how do we best prepare ourselves for,the Asia Pacific century - to maximise the opportunities, to minimise,the threats and to make our own active contribution to making this,Asia-Pacific Century peaceful, prosperous and sustainable for us all.

As nations we should also commit afresh to righting past wrongs. In,Australia we began this recently with the first Australians - the,oldest continuing culture in human history. On behalf of the Australian,Parliament, this year I offered an apology to indigenous Australians,for the wrongs they had suffered in the past.

Because the time has come, well and truly come, for all peoples of our,great country, for all citizens of our great commonwealth, for all,Australians - those who are indigenous and those who are not - to come,together to reconcile and together build a new future for our nation.

By 2050, the Australian population is expected to grow from 22 million,to 36 million. That increase alone will put huge pressure on our towns,and our cities. We will need more homes, more roads, more rail lines,more hospitals, more schools, just to accommodate so many Australians.

I am deeply committed to the cause of Indigenous Australians, and not,just because of the Apology, but the big challenges which lie ahead in,closing the gap.

I am determined to honour the confidence which has been extended to us,by the people of our great land. And I say to all of those who have,voted for us today, I say to each and every one of them that I will be,a prime minister for all Australians.

I deeply believe that if the Australian Labor Party, a party of which I,have been a proud member for more than 30 years, is to have the best,future for our nation, then it must change fundamentally its culture,and to end the power of faceless men. Australia must be governed by the,people, not by the factions.

I was elected by the people of Australia as Prime Minister of Australia.

I was elected to do a job, I intend to continue doing that job. I,intend to continue doing it to the absolute best of my ability. Part of,that job has been to steer this country through the worst economic,crisis the world has seen in 75 years.

The bottom line is that it should be all hands to the pump rather than,saying other, frankly negative and internally divisive things.

On Australia Day 2010, as we enter this second decade of the 21st,century, Australians can be optimistic about our future, but we cannot,afford to mistake optimism for complacency.

My fundamental interests are to preserve the good name and standing of,this Australian Labor Party and to act in the national interest on,behalf of the Australian Government.

If the states and territories do not sign up to fundamental reform, then,my message is equally simple: we will take this reform plan to the,people at the next election - along with a referendum by or at that,same election to give the Australian Government all the power it needs,to reform the health system.

There comes a time in the history of nations when their peoples must,become fully reconciled to their past if they are to go forward with,confidence to embrace their future.

There are many who criticise the United Nations. And those of us who,know this institution well know that it is not immune from criticism.

But those who argue against the United Nations advance no credible,argument as to what should replace it. Whatever its imperfections, the,United Nations represents a necessary democracy of states.

The stability of global financial markets is a public good. If,governments fail to protect this public good, then those who suffer are,the working people of the world whose jobs, whose homes, and whose,standard of living depends on it.

The Australia to 2050 report highlights something that is well,understood by South Australians, that infrastructure plays a key role,in long-term economic expansion.

There is a reason why the cultures of Indigenous Australia inspire such,fascination. And that is that they represent a unique way of thinking,about the world. A vision that over tens of thousands of years has,risen out of the land, the power, the very being of our continent,Australia.

These are important reforms. Infrastructure, education, health,hospitals, closing the gap with indigenous Australians. Also the,Apology to the first Australians. As Prime Minister of the country I am,proud of each and every one of these achievements.

To be a member of the Labor Party is to be an optimist - optimistic,about the future of Australia, optimistic about the ability of,government to make a difference.

We apologise for the laws and policies of successive parliaments and,governments that have inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss on,these our fellow Australians. We apologise especially for the removal,of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families,their communities and their country.

We are so fortunate, as Australians, to have among us the oldest,continuing cultures in human history. Cultures that link our nation,with deepest antiquity. We have Aboriginal rock art in the Kimberley,that is as ancient as the great Palaeolithic cave paintings at Altamira,and Lascaux in Europe.

What we have seen in financial markets should bring home to us all that,the central organising principle of this 21st century is,interdependence. For the century just past, interdependence may have,been one option among many. For the century that is to come, there is,no longer an alternative.

With the Australian Government paying more of the hospital bills, it,will have the incentive to make sure people are treated through less,expensive and more appropriate primary care services.

The Apology opened the opportunity for a new relationship based on mutual respect and mutual responsibility between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australia. Because without mutual respect and mutual responsibility, the truth is we can achieve very little.

As nations we should also commit afresh to righting past wrongs. In Australia we began this recently with the first Australians - the oldest continuing culture in human history. On behalf of the Australian Parliament, this year I offered an apology to indigenous Australians for the wrongs they had suffered in the past.

Australia is a nation of compassion. Courage and compassion. And the third of these great values: resilience.

These are important reforms. Infrastructure, education, health, hospitals, closing the gap with indigenous Australians. Also the Apology to the first Australians. As Prime Minister of the country I am proud of each and every one of these achievements.

If the states and territories do not sign up to fundamental reform, then my message is equally simple: we will take this reform plan to the people at the next election - along with a referendum by or at that same election to give the Australian Government all the power it needs to reform the health system.

My fundamental interests are to preserve the good name and standing of this Australian Labor Party and to act in the national interest on behalf of the Australian Government.

Because the time has come, well and truly come, for all peoples of our great country, for all citizens of our great commonwealth, for all Australians - those who are indigenous and those who are not - to come together to reconcile and together build a new future for our nation.

I deeply believe that if the Australian Labor Party, a party of which I have been a proud member for more than 30 years, is to have the best future for our nation, then it must change fundamentally its culture and to end the power of faceless men. Australia must be governed by the people, not by the factions. .