Australia’s new Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (L) is sworn in before Governor-General David Hurley (R), in Canberra on May 23, 2022 (AFP/SAEED KHAN)
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Labor Party Anthony Albanese was sworn in as Australia’s new prime minister on Monday, hours before heading to Japan where he will attend an international summit.
The former centre-left opposition leader, who says Canberra is ready to commit to tackling climate change, will attend a Quad summit (US, India, Japan, Australia) on Tuesday in Tokyo.
The 59-year-old new prime minister was sworn in in a brief ceremony.
Other members of his team who have taken office include Foreign Secretary Penny Wong, who will join Mr Albanese at the top of the Quad, Budget Minister Jim Chalmers and Finance Minister Katy Gallagher.
Anthony Albanese wants to take advantage of his first official trip abroad to “let the world know that there is a change of government”.
“There will be some changes in policy, particularly around climate change and our engagement with the world on these issues,” he added in his victory speech on Sunday.
Mr. Albanese also promised to transform Australia into a “superpower” in renewable energies.
But he has so far remained deaf to calls to end coal, which remains a driving force in the country’s economy and has many Labor supporters.
During the tenure of his predecessor Scott Morrison, Australia experienced disasters of biblical proportions: fires, record floods and the Covid-19 pandemic.
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