Some former prime ministers don't have a lot of nice things to say about Canberra, but Kevin Rudd is not one of them. While one of his Labor predecessors, Paul Keating, seems happy to grasp any opportunity to bag the nation's capital, and former Liberal prime minister John Howard wouldn't even live here, Mr Rudd insists that for him the city has special meaning.
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It certainly does, and his willingness to pour praise on the capital in this its centenary year suggests he would have no qualms moving back into The Lodge - for the good of the nation, of course.
''Canberra has played an important part in my life as an undergraduate at the ANU, as the place where I first met and went out with Therese, where our first daughter Jessica was born at the then Royal Canberra Hospital, and where we have owned our first home inWaramanga, our second home in Melba, and then some time later we were at a well-known address on Adelaide Avenue,'' Mr Rudd said.
''Canberra is a fantastic community for families. For me, therefore, Canberra is not just a place of institutions but of deep family memories and friendships.''
On Thursday night, former Liberal prime minister Malcolm Fraser tweeted: ''Keating was right about Canberra.''
Mr Fraser was no doubt adding to social commentary sparked by Fairfax columnist Martin McKenzie-Murray's article Happy birthday, to a vision turned sterile, about Canberra's centenary.
The ''bat-shit crazy'' online reaction to McKenzie-Murray's column led him to suggest Canberrans were still insecure about their city.
It followed vigorous criticism earlier in the week of Annabel Crabb's ''cliched view'' documentary about Canberra.
Mr Fraser was not available to elaborate on his tweet, but he has agreed with Mr Keating in the past over the design and character of the nation's capital. The former Labor leader has dumped on Canberra many times since leaving it in 1996, even though he spent 25 years working in the capital.
Mr Keating has criticised Canberra's location, its design, its layout, and its culture. Most notably, in 2009 he described it as just plain wrong and that either Melbourne or Sydney should have been the capital.
''Canberra is of its essence a great mistake,'' Mr Keating said, adding that ''living in motels in Canberra is no fun. Going to Chinese restaurants in Manuka, it's got its limitations''.
The man he replaced as Labor prime minister, Bob Hawke, has so far eagerly taken part in the centenary celebrations.
Mr Hawke could not be contacted for comment on Friday.
The present Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, was in no hurry to move to Canberra after she seized office in 2010, but she has since told Fairfax Media that she enjoys her time living in the capital.
The man she replaced, Mr Rudd, sounds like he would be very eager to call Canberra home once more.