Tony Abbott scores new job as president of Britain’s Board of Trade

Australia’s controversial ex-Prime Minister and vocal Brexit supporter Tony Abbott is set to take on a new role for Boris Johnson.

Australia’s ex-Prime Minister Tony Abbot has been appointed joint president of Britain’s relaunched Board of Trade, tasked with drumming up deals for Britain around the world.

Its role is to “champion exports and inward and outward investment to deliver economic growth and prosperity” and has traditionally been made up of British political and business figures.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has asked Mr Abbott to join as part of a drive to get a number of global “friends” to bang the drum from Brexit Britain, The Sun has revealed.

Tony Abbott to work across shores to drum up deals for Britain.

Mr Abbott, who led Australia from 2013 to 2015, was a close ally to the UK during his premiership. He was also a vocal supporter of Brexit both before the referendum and ever since.

Last year he made a plea to Brits not to worry about a ‘no-deal’ exit from the EU, saying that Australia trades with the bloc on exactly those terms.

He wrote: “Let me reassure anyone in Britain, anxious about the prospect of no-deal, that Australia does one hundred billion dollars’ worth of trade with the EU every single year, on this very basis.”

Tony Abbott with his family during his former election campaign.

Since then, Mr Johnson and his ministers have attempted to rebrand a no-deal scenario as a “Australian-style deal”.

Last night a Whitehall source said: “We are delighted to have him on board.”

This article originally appeared in The Sun and was reproduced with permission