Matthew Abbott is a Sydney public relations man. He has worked for small consultancies, for big companies and as an adviser to Joe Hockey in the Howard Government. He has been a finance journalist in London, a war correspondent in Iraq (very briefly) and started his career as a reporter with the Australian Financial Review. Matthew has a Bachelor of Commerce (University of New South Wales) and a Master of Public Affairs (Sydney University). He lectures in a masters program at Sydney University and writes occasionally for The Spectator magazine. His essay about his father and the Burma Railway was runner-up in The Spectator Australia's 2016 Thawley Prize.