Leaked video shows Rudd swearing
A video of Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd swearing in frustration has been leaked online, amid increasing speculation he is preparing for a tilt at his old job.
The video was uploaded to YouTube on Friday by a new member calling themselves HappyVegemiteKR.
It shows Kevin Rudd using strong language in frustration while recording a Chinese language message in Canberra several years ago as the Prime Minister.
A spokesman for Mr Rudd says the Foreign Minister has never made any secret of the fact he sometimes swears.
But the spokesman said he regrets any offence the selectively edited footage may have caused.
The video comes as speculation mounts within federal Labor ranks that the Prime Minister's allies in Cabinet are testing her support.
Newspaper reports suggest some Cabinet members have been warning backbenchers that a return to a Rudd government would destroy the Labor party.
On Saturday, Attorney-General Nicola Roxon declared Julia Gillard a better prime minister than Mr Rudd and urged him to end leadership rumblings.
"Kevin Rudd is a very good Foreign Minister, he should focus on that, the way we all focus on our jobs as ministers," she said.
"I think the really disappointing thing about what is going on at the moment is it means instead of talking about our proud record of what Labor has delivered to the community, we are talking about each other and ourselves. That doesn't help anybody."
Mr Rudd's backers have long said a challenge for the top job could happen after the Queensland election. However, the frenzied pace of leadership speculation could see it happen sooner.
Mr Rudd is currently on a campaign trail in Queensland, most notably helping Kate Jones to try to keep her seat of Ashgrove, which is being contested by would-be premier Campbell Newman.
First posted February 19, 2012 01:10:52
Leaked video shows Rudd swearing - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)