Nothing beaut about Rudd's loaned ute - The Australian
JOHN Grant, the generous neighbour who gave the Prime Minister a political headache by lending him an old ute, says Kevin Rudd can keep the beaten-up Ruddmobile as long as he likes.
"Kevin's my neighbour," Mr Grant said yesterday.
"I like the guy. I like what he's doing and that's why I supported him with a vehicle. It's my vehicle (and), when he's finished, he'll give it back to me."
The 58-year-old car dealer is a successful businessman who lives a couple of blocks down the street from the Prime Minister in the gentrified southern Brisbane suburb of Norman Park. He bought his home in 1993, a year before Mr Rudd moved into the neighbourhood.
At the time, Mr Rudd was the most powerful public servant in Queensland, as director-general of the Office of Cabinet under then Labor premier Wayne Goss.
Mr Grant ran a car rental company, Aussie Rent Pty Ltd, as well as Arrow Management Services, which has since been deregistered.
