IERAN GILBERT, HOST: Assistant Minister Patrick Gorman, thanks for your time. I won't get you to do a commentary of this extraordinary parade, but what I want to ask you about is the government position on this. The diplomat, the ambassador, Scott Dewar, is not there. He's a few thousand kilometres away at a business summit. Is that a message, in terms of Australia's position, that we're not going to stand there as this Asian giant shows off its powers?
[Deputy] Speaker,
September is, arguably, Australia’s most patriotic month.
Today is Australian National Flag Day.
Two days ago — the start of spring — it was National Wattle Day.
17 September is National Citizenship Day.
And while my Rugby League-loving colleagues may disagree, September ends with our biggest sporting occasion - the AFL Grand Final!
And I am delighted to have the opportunity, here in the people’s house, to celebrate National Flag Day.
A chance to reflect on our identity, our future, and our many stories.
The date of Australian National Flag Day, 3 September, marks the day the flag was first officially flown in 1901 at the Royal Exhibition Building in Melbourne.
For 124 years, the Australian National Flag has flown over our government buildings, schools and universities, and alongside our defence force.
On 3 September 1901, the nation’s first Prime Minister, Sir Edmund Barton announced five joint winners of a competition to design a flag for Australia. The competition received nearly 33,000 entries.
The dedication of the Talaroo Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) has been celebrated with a ceremony in North Queensland, as the Albanese Government delivers on its commitment to protect and conserve more of Australia’s land and oceans.
The Talaroo IPA covers 31,941 hectares of land near Mount Surprise in the Gulf Savannah region, along the banks of the Einasleigh River.
Talaroo is a former pastoral station and is located in the heart of Ewamian Country, rich in natural values, cultural heritage and spiritual connection for Ewamian people.
PATRICK GORMAN, ASSISTANT MINISTER TO THE PRIME MINISTER: It is wonderful to be here in the nation's parliament on the first of September for Wattle Day. I am here with Carol Berry, the Member for Whitlam, a wonderful addition to this parliament, and like me, a fan of our national floral emblem, the wattle.
Australians are encouraged to join with their local communities to celebrate National Wattle Day on 1 September.
Held fittingly on the first day of spring, National Wattle Day recognises Australia’s national floral emblem — Acacia pycnantha (golden wattle).
Although golden wattle was only officially named the national floral emblem in 1988, more than 1000 species of wattle have evolved across the diverse Australian landscape over 35 million years.
The Albanese Government has appointed a new Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson for the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) Council.
Mr Karl Hampton, a Warlpiri, Ngulakan and Mara man is the new AIATSIS Chairperson. He is co-founder of the Warlpiri Project, which has repatriated hundreds of cultural heritage items from around Australia and the world to the Warlpiri community.
Mums and babies across Australia are receiving more up-to-date, appropriate care thanks to the Australian Government’s Living Evidence for Australian Pregnancy and Postnatal Care (LEAPP) project.
Today marks two years of the project, which has already developed or updated 250 clinical care guidelines to better support new mums and their babies.
LEAAP has developed the first ever Australian Postnatal Care Guidelines for Australia with 95 new recommendations published. These guidelines cover discharge planning, mental health screening, perineal healing and bereavement support.
Australia is making significant gains on workplace gender equality, with more policies in place, more flexible work options available, and greater representation of women across the workforce. But the latest Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) Progress Report makes it clear there’s still a long way to go, particularly on leadership representation, closing the gender pay gap, and tackling workplace harassment.
TOM CONNELL, HOST: Joining me now the Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister, Patrick Gorman. Thanks for your time. Look, on net zero, there's a lot of broad support for it, but the idea itself is something we only know broadly about. I mean, Barnaby Joyce talks about regional areas - so let's say there's a cattle farmer out there right now in his electorate. They don't have any real idea exactly what they'll be asked to do by 2030 or 2035, do they?