Former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd says the Morrison government’s refusal to loan money to Virgin Australia is its sole failure in this crisis.

The ex-PM came out swinging against the government’s failure to rescue Virgin Australia, insisting that in Scott Morrison’s place, he would’ve offered the airline a temporary loan to keep it afloat.

“I’m not talking about a gift to a company… this would be a loan,” he told Ben Fordham.

“All I’m concerned about is 10,000 jobs, most of them in my home state of Queensland.”

Ben asked the once foreign affairs minister what he would do about China if he was still in politics today.

Mr Rudd opted for diplomacy, saying there’s no “silver bullet” for the economic crisis the world is now in.

“When Prime Minister Morrison came out with that proposal [for a global investigation into the origins of COVID-19], I was in basic agreement.

“I think he could’ve gone about it in a slightly more diplomatic way, that is, by bringing a bunch of other countries along.

“What I would do is try and reduce the temperature a bit. I’d try and get on the phone to my counterpart in Beijing and have an off-the-record conversation.

“To be honest, I think we’re in for a pretty rough road, at least for the next six months or so.”

The former politician also set the record straight over his failed bid to become Alan Jones’ replacement as the 2GB breakfast broadcaster, telling Ben his staff put him up to it.

“If we can’t have a sense of humour in Australian politics, what’s the point my friend?”

Click PLAY below to hear the full interview

Image: Twitter/Kevin Rudd, Getty

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