JOIN USRudd, deposed last month by deputy Julia Gillard, could be made a special envoy or ambassador reporting directly to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, the Daily Telegraph reported.
The paper said UN officials had "refused to hose down speculation" on the prospect of Rudd leaving Australia to take up the appointment. Rudd was in New York last week and met Ban and other UN officials.
When Rudd lost the leadership of the Labor Party last month, he said he intended to recontest the parliamentary election Gillard called for August 21 and stay in Parliament if he retained his seat. But there is pressure on him to leave Parliament for fear he would be an irritant to the woman who tore him down. Gillard has promised Rudd a senior cabinet post if Labor wins a second term but has been advised against delivering on that promise.
"I'm aware that Kevin Rudd has said that he is recontesting the seat of Griffith and wants to remain a member of the House of Representatives," Labor spokesman Chris Bowen said. "I'm also aware that he is very well respected internationally, and perhaps this sort of speculation is unsurprising."