About this record

This is a colour photograph of the Hon. Kevin Rudd, Australia's twenty-sixth prime minister. It shows him talking with Mrs Bess Carr at the launch of the Shell-shocked exhibition at the National Archives in 2008. Kevin Rudd held office from 2007 to 2010 when he was replaced as the leader of the Parliamentary Labor Party by Julia Gillard. The historic highlight of his first months in office was his apology to Indigenous people for the 'profound grief, suffering and loss' caused by past policies, particularly the policy of removing children from their families. Other issues addressed were signing the Kyoto Protocol, abolishing the WorkChoices legislation, tackling climate change, and health care reforms.