Alan Tudge says he is willing to return to frontbench after election in first interview in months

Liberal MP questioned at prepoll in Melbourne electorate of Aston after declining media requests during campaign

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Exiled cabinet minister Alan Tudge says he plans to return to the government frontbenches if the Coalition wins the election, while also claiming he is unaware" of the reasons his former staffer Rachelle Miller is getting a taxpayer-funded payout of more than half a million dollars.

Tudge, who stood aside as education minister in December 2021, says he has no information about the payment Miller is receiving, and denied he had been avoiding media questioning.