Former prime minister Tony Abbott is under consideration for a vacancy on the high-powered Australian War Memorial council.
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Mr Abbott, who lost his NSW seat of Warringah after two decades in May, is understood to be "top of the list" to fill the spot on the council following the death of acclaimed author and historian Les Carlyon, a former Age editor, in March.
Allies of Mr Abbott within the Coalition government have been urging the Prime Minister Scott Morrison to "look after" his former colleague since he was defeated at the federal election by independent MP Zali Steggall.
It's understood Mr Abbott has made it clear he is not interested in a diplomatic job and the government has previously quashed speculation he was in line for a posting to the Vatican as Australia's Ambassador to the Holy See.
Veterans' Affairs Minister Darren Chester told The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald he was not in a position to speculate on the appointment.
"There is a vacancy on the war memorial council and I will be making a recommendation to cabinet in the coming weeks," Mr Chester said.
The position attracts a modest salary of $26,340 plus additional travel and meal allowances.
Carlyon, the author of Gallipoli and The Great War, had served on the memorial's council in successive terms since May 2006.
One of Australia's most popular domestic and international tourist attractions, the Canberra institution has attracted billions of dollars of public and private investment in the past decade, under director Brendan Nelson, also a former federal Liberal leader.
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The Australian War Memorial Council is headed by Seven West chairman Kerry Stokes, a well-known benefactor to Australia's national cultural institutions who donates to a wide range of other charitable causes. He was reappointed for a second three-year term by the government in August 2017.
Among the other members are Margaret Jackson, a corporate executive and longtime chair of Qantas, current Amy chief Lieutenant General Rick Burr and former Royal Australian Navy commander, Vice Admiral Michael Noonan.
About $500 million is being spent upgrading the Canberra site, in an effort to bring Australia's recent military history to the forefront of the memorial's activities amid some criticism it could diminish the intended purpose of the memorial.
The investment, supported federally by both major parties, will see Anzac Hall at the rear of the building knocked down and reconstructed with more than double the exhibition space.
An underground atrium beneath the front of the building and a new precinct at the back of the memorial will also be constructed.
- SMH/The Age