New Australian government includes record 13 women ministers

May 31, 2022, 8:03 PM | Updated: Jun 1, 2022, 8:27 am

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front center, poses with a group of women including 13 ...

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front center, poses with a group of women including 13 female government ministers after their swearing-in ceremony at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, June 1, 2022. Australia’s new government sworn in Wednesday includes a record 13 women, including the first female Muslim to serve in the role and the second Indigenous person named Indigenous Affairs minister. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)

(Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s new government sworn in Wednesday includes a record 13 women, including the first female Muslim to serve in the role and the second Indigenous person named Indigenous Affairs minister.

The ceremony conducted by Governor-General David Hurley in the capital, Canberra, came 11 days after new Prime Minister Anthony Albanese led the center-left Labor Party to an election victory over the incumbent conservatives.

“Proud to lead an inclusive government that is as diverse as Australia itself,” Albanese wrote on Twitter. “Welcome to all these new Labor members.”

Youth Minister Anne Aly is Australia’s first female Muslim minister, while Industry and Science Minister Ed Husic is the first Muslim to serve in Cabinet.

Linda Burney became the first woman, and only the second Indigenous person, to serve as Indigenous Affairs minister.

Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong were sworn in early last week so they could fly to Tokyo for a summit with President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Of the 30 ministers appointed to the new government, nearly half are women. Women also hold a record 10 spots out of 23 in core Cabinet roles.

With some votes still to be counted from last month’s election, the Labor Party has secured enough seats to hold an outright majority in the 150-seat House.

Albanese’s Cabinet includes some new faces as well as some lawmakers who served in the previous Labor government that last held power nine years ago.

“We have an overflow of talent on our side of the parliament,” Albanese said, adding that “it’s the most experienced incoming Labor government in our history since federation.”

Albanese has been getting support from an unusual source: British singer-songwriter Billy Bragg.

Bragg wrote on Twitter that he’d awoken to find that “the new prime minister of Australia had quoted my lyrics in his first press conference.”

Bragg went on to say he wasn’t surprised as he’s been friends with Albanese for more than 20 years after they met at a theater in Sydney and bonded over a shared love of music and compassionate politics.

“The challenges he faces are daunting and I don’t envy him his success,” Bragg wrote. “Some of us just sing about making the world a better place — he now has the responsibility of delivering on that promise.”

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


              Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front center, poses with a group of women including 13 female government ministers after their swearing-in ceremony at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, June 1, 2022. Australia’s new government sworn in Wednesday includes a record 13 women, including the first female Muslim to serve in the role and the second Indigenous person named Indigenous Affairs minister. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)
            
              Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front center, poses with a group of women including 13 female government ministers after their swearing-in ceremony at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, June 1, 2022. Australia’s new government sworn in Wednesday includes a record 13 women, including the first female Muslim to serve in the role and the second Indigenous person named Indigenous Affairs minister. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)
            
              Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front center, poses with a group of women including 13 female government ministers after their swearing-in ceremony at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, June 1, 2022. Australia’s new government sworn in Wednesday includes a record 13 women, including the first female Muslim to serve in the role and the second Indigenous person named Indigenous Affairs minister. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)
            
              Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front center, poses with a group of women including 13 female government ministers after their swearing-in ceremony at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, June 1, 2022. Australia’s new government sworn in Wednesday includes a record 13 women, including the first female Muslim to serve in the role and the second Indigenous person named Indigenous Affairs minister. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)
            
              Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front center, poses with a group of women including 13 female government ministers after their swearing-in ceremony at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, June 1, 2022. Australia’s new government sworn in Wednesday includes a record 13 women, including the first female Muslim to serve in the role and the second Indigenous person named Indigenous Affairs minister. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)
            
              Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front center, poses with a group of women including 13 female government ministers after their swearing-in ceremony at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, June 1, 2022. Australia’s new government sworn in Wednesday includes a record 13 women, including the first female Muslim to serve in the role and the second Indigenous person named Indigenous Affairs minister. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)
            
              Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front center, poses with a group of women including 13 female government ministers after their swearing-in ceremony at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, June 1, 2022. Australia’s new government sworn in Wednesday includes a record 13 women, including the first female Muslim to serve in the role and the second Indigenous person named Indigenous Affairs minister. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)
            
              Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese reacts after a swearing-in ceremony for his cabinet at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, June 1, 2022. Australia's new cabinet was sworn in at the nation's capital on Wednesday with a record number of women in ministerial roles, including the country's first ever Muslim ministers. (Lukas Coch/AAP Image via AP)
            
              Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front centre, and his ministers pose for a group photo after their swearing-in ceremony at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, June 1, 2022. Australia's new cabinet was sworn in at the nation's capital on Wednesday with a record number of women in ministerial roles, including the country's first ever Muslim ministers. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)
            
              Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, front center, and his ministers pose for a group photo after their swearing-in ceremony at Government House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, June 1, 2022. Australia's new cabinet was sworn in at the nation's capital on Wednesday with a record number of women in ministerial roles, including the country's first ever Muslim ministers. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)

AP

(Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP)Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS...

Associated Press

Florida police search for 3 gunmen who wounded 9 at crowded beach on Memorial Day

Police are responding to a shooting near the beach broadwalk in Hollywood, Florida.

2 days ago

Crew members assemble the main stage ahead of the 2023 Scripps Nations Spelling Bee on Sunday, May ...

Associated Press

Exclusive secrets of the National Spelling Bee: Picking the words to identify a champion

As the final pre-competition meeting of the Scripps National Spelling Bee's word selection panel stretches into its seventh hour, the pronouncers no longer seem to care.

2 days ago

FILE - Gabby Petito's mother Nichole Schmidt, wipes a tear from her face during a news conference o...

Associated Press

Mother of man who killed Gabby Petito said in letter she would help son ‘dispose of a body’

The mother of the man who killed Gabby Petito told her son in an undated letter that she would “dispose of a body” if needed because she loved him so much, according to copies of the note shared publicly for the first time this week by attorneys for Petito's parents.

5 days ago

A member of the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, also known as The Old Guard, places flags in front of e...

Associated Press

5 things to know about Memorial Day including its controversies

Memorial Day is supposed to be about mourning the nation’s fallen service members, but it’s come to anchor the unofficial start of summer and a long weekend of discounts on anything from mattresses to lawn mowers.

5 days ago

FILE - This artist sketch depicts the trial of Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes, left, as he test...

Associated Press

Officers describe chaos, fear on Jan. 6 as judge weighs prison time for Oath Keepers’ Rhodes

Police officers who defended the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and public servants who fled the mob's attack told a judge on Wednesday that they are still haunted by what they endured, as the judge prepares to hand down sentences in a landmark Capitol riot case.

6 days ago

Pride month merchandise is displayed at the front of a Target store in Hackensack, N.J., Wednesday,...

Associated Press

Target on the defensive after removing LGBTQ+-themed products

Target once distinguished itself as being boldly supportive of the LGBTQ+ community.

7 days ago

Sponsored Articles

...

Desert Institute for Spine Care

Spinal fusion surgery has come a long way, despite misconceptions

As Dr. Justin Field of the Desert Institute for Spine Care explained, “we've come a long way over the last couple of decades.”

(Desert Institute for Spine Care in Arizona Photo)...

Desert Institute for Spine Care in Arizona

5 common causes for chronic neck pain

Neck pain can debilitate one’s daily routine, yet 80% of people experience it in their lives and 20%-50% deal with it annually.

...

Day & Night Air Conditioning, Heating and Plumbing

Company looking for oldest air conditioner and wants to reward homeowner with new one

Does your air conditioner make weird noises or a burning smell when it starts? If so, you may be due for an AC unit replacement.

New Australian government includes record 13 women ministers