Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop in the cabinet meeting that ultimately ended Kevin Rudd's bid to become UN chief. Credit:Andrew Meares Immediately following the cabinet meeting last Thursday, it was widely reported that the 23-member body was split down the middle on the Rudd matter and authorised the Prime Minister to make a "captain's call". But Mr Joyce rejected this characterisation, saying it was a "decision of cabinet" and a "majority" wanted to knock back Rudd. Multiple reports have since revealed that cabinet voted in favour of nominating Mr Rudd, 11 votes to 10. The Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister did not vote. Mr Turnbull, backed by Nationals leader Mr Joyce, who said he would support the Prime Minister's opinion, then aborted the cabinet discussion and ultimately smacked down Mr Rudd.

Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen One cabinet minister told The Australian Financial Review that the Deputy Prime Minister's recollection was an "interesting version of events". 2. Has Foreign Minister and deputy Liberal leader Julie Bishop been undermined? Mr Joyce, Mr Turnbull and Ms Bishop. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen Leading up to the meeting, the Foreign Minister was the leading backer of Mr Rudd's candidacy and she took the position – supposedly in line with Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade advice – to cabinet, where she argued strongly for it.

Ms Bishop is the relevant minister when it comes to the United Nations and her position was then backed by 11 cabinet ministers but was rejected by her leader. There have also been reports that Mr Turnbull told Mr Rudd as far back as May that he should drop his bid – but Ms Bishop was not informed of the development. 3. Does the Prime Minister's decision represent a capitulation to the conservative wing of his party? The conservative faction of the Liberal Party, both inside and outside cabinet, was said to be most staunchly opposed to the former prime minister's candidacy. The moderates were more open to the idea. The Prime Minister went with the position held by the conservatives, feeding a narrative that he is overly sensitive to their concerns and regularly compromises to please them and retain their support.

4. Or does it reflect lingering hostility towards Mr Rudd based on former rivalry? It was opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull's misplaced and high-stakes attack on Mr Rudd over the "Utegate" affair in 2009 that saw his position undermined and, combined with the the division over climate change policy, eventually terminated. Following the bungled attack, Mr Rudd demanded his counterpart be sacked from the leadership and Mr Turnbull has spoken publicly about how difficult the political defeat was for him. He even announced he was leaving politics, only to reconsider at the last minute. Despite his political come back, does the Prime Minister harbour lingering resentment towards his erstwhile rival? 5. Did Malcolm Turnbull abandon previously expressed support for Mr Rudd?

In the letters he leaked, Mr Rudd claimed that Mr Turnbull had expressed support for his bid late last year. The Prime Minister, who has questioned the one-sided nature of the correspondence, said this was "absolutely untrue". He insisted that the accounts were "at odds with my recollection" and that Mr Rudd was aware the decision was a matter for cabinet. But did Mr Turnbull then contradict the mood of cabinet and make his own decision? 6. Did the Prime Minister mislead Parliament? In early May, the Prime Minister gave the following question time answer to the opposition's query about whether the government would support Rudd's nomination:

"In the event of this matter becoming a live one, certainly the cabinet will consider it and give it due attention." Mr Rudd had made his formal request for support a month earlier, arguably making it a "live" issue. 7. What do these sustained cabinet leaks so early in the new term mean? In the scheme of things, the Rudd decision is a minor one. Matters of great importance to the nation come across the cabinet table on a regular basis. Yet this decision has seen multiple accounts published of confidential cabinet discussions. Cabinet leaks are considered rare, undesirable and a measure of government instability.