| Translate This News In |
|---|
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese swore in a record number of women to a diverse ministerial team that includes religious minorities and Indigenous Aboriginals.
Albanese’s 23-member cabinet includes ten women, up from seven in the previous Liberal-National coalition government led by Scott Morrison.
Industry Minister Ed Husic and Youth Minister Anne Aly were sworn in as Australia’s first Muslim federal ministers in a ceremony in Canberra, while Linda Burney, draped in a kangaroo-skin cloak, was sworn in as the first Aboriginal woman to lead the Indigenous Australians ministry.
Two days after the May 21 election, Albanese organised an interim ministry with four other key members in order to attend a Quad group meeting in Tokyo, which was attended by US President Joe Biden and the leaders of Japan and India.
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles, who was part of the interim government alongside Penny Wong in foreign affairs, Jim Chalmers in treasurer, and Katy Gallagher in finance, has been given the defence responsibility.
Don Farrell is the new trade minister, Tanya Plibersek is the environment minister, Clare O’Neil is in charge of home affairs, and Chris Bowen is in charge of energy.
Bill Shorten, the former Labor leader, will be the minister of government services.
On Tuesday, Albanese said that Labor will govern in its own right, claiming 77 seats in the 151-seat lower house, allowing it to create a majority government without the help of climate-focused independents and Greens.
Securing a majority reduces the likelihood that Labor will have to negotiate with 16 crossbenchers to enact legislation, though it will still need to gain further support in parliament’s upper house.
