Australia's prime minister Julia Gillard reveals all about her ‘best friends’

Australia's prime minister Julia Gillard has spoken about her best friends during a visit to the New South Wales central coast.

Gillard revealed about her friends after she was asked the question by a student of St Joseph’s and St Andrew's primary schools during a visit to the central coast.

She said Deb and Wayne were her best friends. “Well, I have to say [Labour backbencher] Deb [O'Neill]," she told the packed auditorium. "We communicate by text and frequently when things aren't going quite so well, I look down and get a text from Deb who's clearly feeling my pain and sends me a supportive text."

According to the Herald Sun, O'Neill, member for the central coast seat of Robertson and a former teacher at St Andrew's, was with the prime minister during her visit.

Another best buddy, Gillard confided, was her deputy prime Minister Wayne Swan. "We end up doing a lot together and sharing a lot of burden and that brings you very, very close," she said.

"But your friends outside politics are also important ... and family, because whatever else happens, you always were and always will be the same person to them," she added.

Gillard was also asked about how she felt being the first woman prime minister of Australia.

"It's brought some special things, and the occasional problem. It means you are much more likely to fall over because of high heels," she said, to laughter from the auditorium.