The first meetings of the Referendum Working Group and the Referendum Engagement Group will be held in Canberra today.

The groups will work with Government on the next steps to a referendum in this term of Parliament to enshrine an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice in the Constitution.

The Referendum Working Group, co-chaired by Minister Linda Burney and Special Envoy Patrick Dodson, includes a broad cross-section of representatives from First Nations communities across Australia.

We are pleased to announce that the Governor-General, His Excellency General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd), has accepted the advice of the Government to appoint the Honourable Justice Jayne Jagot as a Justice of the High Court of Australia.

Justice Jagot will commence on 17 October 2022 upon the retirement of the Honourable Justice Patrick Keane AC.

Justice Jagot is the 56th Justice of the High Court and the seventh woman appointed to the Court. This is the first time since Federation that a majority of Justices on the High Court will be women.

LEON BYNER, HOST: Let's welcome the bloke who's the boss of Australia, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Prime Minister, thank you for coming on and welcome.

ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Good morning, Leon. Good to be with you.

BYNER: Now, has the Government received any assurances from Optus that it will pay for new passports for customers affected by the cyber breach?

Can I begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which meet and pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging, and recommit, as I do now on behalf of the Australian Government, to the implementation of the Uluru Statement from the Heart in full.

Can I express my appreciation for all of you for being here, and for your leadership in this journey. And, as a non-Indigenous Australian, express my appreciation for the generosity of the offer which is embodied and enshrined in the Uluru Statement from the Heart.

National Cabinet met in Canberra today to discuss national priorities.

COVID-19

The Commonwealth Chief Medical Officer provided an update on the COVID-19 pandemic. First Ministers discussed a nationally consistent approach to transition Australia’s COVID-19 response on the basis of the following principles:

PRIME MINISTER ANTHONY ALBANESE: I do want to begin by briefly mentioning the devastating impact of Hurricane Ian in Florida, and extend my deepest sympathies on behalf of Australia to all of those who have been affected in the Florida Peninsula, the Cayman Islands and Cuba. The images of the destruction and suffering has sent a shock of grief and sympathy right around the world. Australia has stood together with the US in times of natural disaster.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will welcome Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea the Honourable James Marape MP to Australia on Sunday 25 September for a Guest of Government visit.

Prime Minister Marape and Prime Minister Albanese will attend the Prime Minister’s XIII Rugby League matches on Sunday evening at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium.

Rugby league has formed a key part of the relationship between Papua New Guinea and Australia for decades.

The first PM’s XIII was played in 2005 at Lloyd Robson Oval, Port Moresby, with the match to return to PNG next year.

In September 2021, the leaders of Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States announced AUKUS, an enhanced trilateral security partnership. The need for this partnership is as clear today as it was a year ago. We stand together to support an international order that respects human rights, the rule of law, and the peaceful resolution of disputes free from coercion. AUKUS is a central element in our efforts to achieve these aims.

HOST: Good morning and welcome to the show. Hi, everybody.

HOST: Very special guest live in the studio this morning. He must be important because there is an entourage.

HOST: An entourage.

HOST: Quite a few people taking photos. Our Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese. He's grabbing the chicken already. Excuse me.

PRIME MINISTER: Good morning.

HOST: Prime Minister, welcome. Welcome to the 4BC studios.

HOST: Are we all upstanding? Can we please – let me play this. The one and only Anthony Albanese is in the building, is in the room. 

HOST: Anthony Albanese, we ran the risk of getting rid of listeners by telling people you are coming so we gave them warning. Hopefully someone’s still listening.

PRIME MINISTER ANTHONY ALBANESE: Come on. The ratings will go up

HOST: Mate, he just offered you a 20, he pulled his wallet out.