Peta Credlin announced as political commentator for Sky News election coverage
A LOT has been written about Peta Credlin since the downfall of Tony Abbott. Now the former-PM’s chief of staff has an intriguing new role.
PEOPLE will be hearing a lot more from Peta Credlin in the lead up to the federal election.
The former chief of staff to discarded PM Tony Abbott will play a critical role in the upcoming election after confirming her role as a commentator on Sky News, “turning the tables on her political foes and media tormentors”, reports The Australian.
In a rare interview, Credlin told the publication she intends “to help ordinary Australians better understand” the choices they face at the polls — though whether her opinion will remain unbiased is yet to be seen, considering her past political leanings.
Yet Credlin said the role, which will see her face in front of the camera instead of behind it, will allow her to dive back into world of politics before “returning to the commercial sector later this year”.
“In the interim, Sky’s offer to contribute to their election campaign team gives me a chance to use my political experience to unpack the policies on offer, take a good look at the ultimate shape of the budget and be part of the discussion about how our country might end up if it stays with the Coalition, or makes the change to Labor.”
Her second interview in 16 years, Credlin used the opportunity to comment on the scathing assessment of the Abbott government in a recently released book by The Australian columnist Nikki Savva.
According to The Road to Ruin by Savva, Senator Connie Fierraventi-Wells approached Abbott and Ms Credlin in January 2015 over rumours the pair were getting too close for comfort.
“Politics is about perceptions,” Savva quotes Ms Fierraventi-Wells as saying.
“Rightly or wrongly, the perception is that you are sleeping with your chief of staff. That’s the perception, and you need to deal with it.”
Ms Fierraventi-Wells told Abbott she felt she needed to tell him “the brutal truth”. “This is what your colleagues really think”.
Peta Credlin joins @SkyNewsAust #auspol pic.twitter.com/mjFf5gUqeS
— Political Alert (@political_alert) March 30, 2016
Savva has been criticised for not approaching Ms Credlin or Abbott to respond to claims in the book.
In today’s interview, Ms Credlin indirectly referred to those rumours, criticising Savva for not approaching her directly about the claims.
“I have only given one interview in 16 years and that related to our time trying to start a family. The rest of the commentary about me is what’s others have had to say — some accurate, some tough but fair but much of it a long way from the truth especially where the journalist hasn’t even bothered to call to check their ‘facts’.”
Ms Credlin will join Sky News in May.
“To say a lot has happened since the Coalition was elected in September 2013 would be an understatement,” she told Sky.
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