Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull will reveal today how he has resolved the stand-off over whether Kevin Rudd should be nominated as a candidate for secretary-general of the United Nations.

Mr Turnbull’s first post-election Cabinet meeting ended messily yesterday when it failed to decide on the former PM’s future.

The question of “What to do about Kevin Rudd” has been looming over the Government all year, with Foreign Minister Julie Bishop fobbing off questions about Mr Rudd by saying she would see who nominates and then deciding whether to support them.

When Cabinet met yesterday for the first time since the election, Ms Bishop recommended Mr Rudd’s nomination.

But there was vigorous opposition, including from Immigration Minister Peter Dutton.

Cabinet failed to decide, leaving Mr Turnbull to make a captain’s pick — something he criticised when he replaced former prime minister Tony Abbott last year.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd shakes hands with UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon. Photo: Getty

“There must be an end to policy on the run and captain’s calls,” Mr Turnbull said in September.

The pick is tricky as many in the Coalition have warned they would be angry if Mr Rudd is nominated. But not putting his name forward would be seen as partisan, and risk future Governments blocking Coalition people from running for global jobs.

The failure to decide is puzzling, given Liberal Senator Cory Bernardi put the Government on notice in February.

“His megalomania, his narcissism, his arrogance and the dysfunction [mean] we should not inflict him on the United Nations,” Mr Bernardi said of Mr Rudd.

This stand-off is likely to hurt Mr Rudd if his campaign gets to the next phase.

He is already behind most candidates, like the former New Zealand Labour Prime Minister Helen Clark, who has been campaigning for the job since April.

– ABC