CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is the country's most popular leader in two decades after apologising to Aborigines for past injustices and ratifying the Kyoto climate pact, a poll showed on Tuesday.
Labor's Rudd, who ended 11 years of conservative governmentrule last November, was preferred leader for 70 percent ofvoters, said a Newspoll in the Australian newspaper.
The reading was the highest since the survey was firstpublished in 1987 and also showed 69 percent of voterssupported Rudd's apology to Aborigines for past injustices, amove which overturned the previous conservative government'sopposition to saying sorry to the disadvantaged indigenouspopulation.
Conservative opponents said the result reflected saturationcoverage of Wednesday's apology, which was watched byAustralians on huge outdoor television screens in cities acrossthe country.
"Newly elected governments go through this sort ofhoneymoon and with the apology, the prime minister has receivedenormous publicity," opposition spokesman Nick Minchin toldlocal radio.
Opponents say Rudd has been making "grand gestures" likethe apology and December's decision to ratify the KyotoProtocol, again overturning the previous government policy, tomaintain momentum in the wake of his crushing election win.
But the conservatives remain in disarray after the exitfrom politics of former prime minister John Howard, who losthis seat in the landslide to Rudd after almost 12 years inpower.
A television programme screened on Monday had seniormembers of the former government telling how they secretlypressured Howard to retire from mid-2006 to rejuvenate theparty.
The Newspoll showed support for new opposition leaderBrendan Nelson was at just 9 percent. Nelson's poor readingwill add to divisions over the conservative leadership, withlawmakers split between the former doctor and Australia'srichest MP, former investment banker Malcolm Turnbull, whonarrowly lost to Nelson.
(Editing by Michael Perry and Sanjeev Miglani)
