13 August 2013

Kevin Rudd is a very tricky fellow


Shortly after midday today I emailed to Kevin Rudd’s Parliament House email address Kevin.Rudd.MP@aph.gov.au a letter signed by me, on behalf of the Campaign for an Iraq War Inquiry. The letter was a Word document attached to the email.

A short time later I received this autoreply:

From: Rudd, Kevin (MP) [mailto:Kevin.Rudd.MP@aph.gov.au]
Sent: Tuesday, 13 August 2013 1:08 PM
To: Paul Barratt
Subject: Prime Minister Auto Reply

Thank you for taking the time to write to Mr Rudd

This email is no longer active. To contact the Prime Minister please go to www.pm.gov.au and use the 'Contact the Prime Minister' facility.

If you reside within the Griffith Electorate, or if your email pertains to a diary matter, your correspondence will be referred to the relevant staff member or Mr Rudd for a timely response.

If you reside outside of the Griffith Electorate, please contact your local Federal Member of Parliament for immediate assistance. You can find your Federal Member of Parliament by visiting –


Thank you once again for your email.

On attempting to use the “Contact the Prime Minister” facility at http://www.pm.gov.au/contact-your-pm I turned up a page which told me:

During the caretaker period (starting 5:30pm Monday 05 August 2013), the Contact your Prime Minister function will not be operating.

If you wish to contact Prime Minister Rudd during this period, please direct your enquiries through the Labor Party website.

On going to the Labor Party website I find all sorts of opportunities to follow the Dear Leader on Twitter or FaceBook, or to volunteer, and right down the bottom of the page is a link Contact us in tiny writing. This gives me the opportunity to send a message by means within the website, but nowhere is there anywhere I can see that gives me an opportunity to email the Prime Minister with a letter attached. Mr Rudd is on transmit only at the moment, it would appear.

But I shall send him the letter by snail mail, and publish it. Coming ready or not.

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