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. Read: Lights of Vivid to return to Australia in COVID-19 revival 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.” Read: New Australian leader Albanese makes whirlwind world debut 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.

Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury has said "Australia Awards" recipients are returning home with innovative ideas and knowledge, and the ability to make a significant contribution to the country as leaders in their respective fields. She thanked the Australian government for the professional development opportunities provided by Australia Awards. Australian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Jeremy Bruer hosted a reception on Thursday to bid farewell to new Australia Awards scholars and welcome home recently returned alumni who have completed their studies in Australia.  Australia Awards alumni, senior Bangladesh government representatives, development and business community leaders, and officials from the Australian High Commission were present.  Also read:Agri-Business Conclave to bridge Dutch innovation, tech for dev of Bangladesh agro, food industry

Novak Djokovic faces deportation again after the Australian government revoked his visa for a second time, the latest twist in the ongoing saga over whether the No. 1-ranked tennis player will be allowed to compete in the Australian Open despite being unvaccinated for COVID-19. Immigration Minister Alex Hawke said Friday he used his ministerial discretion to cancel the 34-year-old Serb’s visa on public interest grounds — just three days before play begins at the Australian Open, where Djokovic has won a record nine of his 20 Grand Slam titles. Djokovic’s lawyers were expected to appeal at the Federal Circuit and Family Court, which they already successfully did last week on procedural grounds after his visa was first canceled when he landed at a Melbourne airport. Read: Djokovic in Australian Open draw despite visa uncertainty A hearing was scheduled for Friday night. Deportation from Australia can lead to a three-year ban on returning to the country, although that may be waived, depending on the circumstances. Hawke said he canceled the visa on “health and good order grounds, on the basis that it was in the public interest to do so.” His statement added that Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s government “is firmly committed to protecting Australia’s borders, particularly in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic.” Morrison himself welcomed Djokovic’s pending deportation. The whole episode has touched a nerve in Australia, and particularly in Victoria state, where locals went through hundreds of days of lockdowns during the worst of the pandemic and there is a vaccination rate among adults of more than 90%. Australia is currently facing a massive surge in virus cases driven by the highly transmissible omicron variant. On Friday, the nation reported 130,000 new cases, including nearly 35,000 in Victoria state. Although many infected people aren’t getting as sick as they did in previous outbreaks, the surge is still putting severe strain on the health system, with more than 4,400 people hospitalized. It’s also causing disruptions to workplaces and supply chains. “This pandemic has been incredibly difficult for every Australian but we have stuck together and saved lives and livelihoods. ... Australians have made many sacrifices during this pandemic, and they rightly expect the result of those sacrifices to be protected,” Morrison said in a statement. “This is what the Minister is doing in taking this action today.” Everyone at the Australian Open — including players, their support teams and spectators — is required to be vaccinated for the illness caused by the coronavirus. Djokovic is not inoculated and had sought a medical exemption on the grounds that he had COVID-19 in December. That exemption was approved by the Victoria state government and Tennis Australia, apparently allowing him to obtain a visa to travel. But the Australian Border Force rejected the exemption and canceled his visa when he landed in Melbourne on Jan. 5. Djokovic spent four nights in an immigration detention hotel before a judge on Monday overturned that decision. That ruling allowed Djokovic to move freely around Australia and he has been practicing at Melbourne Park daily to prepare to play in a tournament he has won each of the past three years. He had a practice session originally scheduled for mid-afternoon Friday at Rod Laver Arena, the tournament’s main stadium, but pushed that to the morning and was finished several hours before Hawke’s decision was announced in the early evening. After the visa cancellation from Hawke, media started gathering outside the building where Djokovic reportedly was meeting with his lawyers. An Australian Open spokeswoman said tournament organizers did not have any immediate comment on the latest development in Djokovic's situation, which has overshadowed all other story lines heading into the year's first Grand Slam event. “It’s not a good situation for anyone,” said Andy Murray, a three-time Grand Slam champion and five-time runner-up at the Australian Open. “Just want it obviously to get resolved. I think it would be good for everyone if that was the case. It just seems like it’s dragged on for quite a long time now — not great for the tennis, not great for the Australian Open, not great for Novak.” Tennis Australia announced that nine players would hold pre-tournament news conferences Saturday, and Djokovic’s name was not on the list. With his legal situation still in limbo, Djokovic was placed in the tournament bracket in Thursday's draw, slated to face Miomir Kecmanovic in an all-Serbian matchup in the first round. According to Grand Slam rules, if Djokovic is forced to pull out of the tournament before the order of play for Day 1 is announced, No. 5 seed Rublev would move into Djokovic’s spot in the bracket and face Kecmanovic. If Djokovic withdraws from the tournament after Monday’s schedule is released, he would be replaced in the field by what’s known as a “lucky loser” — a player who loses in the qualifying tournament but gets into the main draw because of another player’s exit before competition has started. Read: Djokovic admits travel declaration had incorrect information And if Djokovic plays in a match — or more — and then is told he can no longer participate in the tournament, his next opponent would simply advance to the following round and there would be no replacement. Melbourne-based immigration lawyer Kian Bone said Djokovic’s lawyers face an “extremely difficult” task to get court orders over the weekend to allow their client to play next week. Speaking hours before Hawke’s decision was announced, Bone said: “If you left it any later than he has done now, I think from a strategic standpoint, he’s really hamstringing Djokovic’s legal team, in terms of what sort of options or remedies he could obtain.” Djokovic’s lawyers would need to go before a duty judge of the Federal Circuit and Family Court, or a higher judge of the Federal Court, to get two urgent orders. One order would be an injunction preventing his deportation, such as what he won in court last week. The second would force Hawke to grant Djokovic a visa to play. “That second order is almost not precedented,” Bone said. “Very rarely do the courts order a member of the executive government to grant a visa.”

An Australian judge who will decide whether top-ranked tennis star Novak Djokovic plays in the Australian Open questioned on Monday what more the Serbian could have done to meet Australia’s coronavirus entry requirements. The 34-year-old is fighting deportation and the cancellation of his visa in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia. The Australian government canceled his visa shortly after he arrived in Melbourne late Wednesday because officials decided he didn’t meet the criteria for an exemption to an entry requirement that all non-citizens be fully vaccinated for COVID-19. Djokovic, who court documents say is unvaccinated, argued he did not need proof of vaccination because he had evidence that he had been infected with the coronavirus last month. Australian medical authorities have ruled that a temporary exemption for the vaccination rule can be provided to people who have been infected with COVID-19 within six months. Circuit Court Judge Anthony Kelly noted that Djokovic had provided officials at Melbourne’s airport with a medical exemption given him by Tennis Australia, which is organizing the tournament that starts on Jan. 17, and two medical panels. “The point I’m somewhat agitated about is what more could this man have done?” Kelly asked Djokovic’s lawyer, Nick Wood. Read: Will he stay or will he go? Djokovic’s hearing looms large Wood agreed with the judge that Djokovic could not have done more. Transcripts of Djokovic’s interview with Border Force officials and his own affidavit revealed a “repeated appeal to the officers with which he was dealing that to his understanding, uncontradicted, he had done absolutely everything that he understood was required in order for him to enter Australia,” Wood said. Djokovic has been under guard in hotel quarantine in Melbourne since Thursday, when his visa was canceled. But the judge ordered that the world No. 1-ranked tennis player be released from hotel quarantine during his court hearing. It was not clear where Djokovic relocated to during his hearing. He did not appear on screen in the first hours of the virtual hearing. Lawyers for Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews will make their submission later Monday on why Djokovic should be deported. Djokovic’s lawyers submitted 11 grounds for appeal against his visa cancellation. Read: Djokovic in limbo as he fights deportation from Australia The lawyers described the cancellation as “seriously illogical,” irrational and legally unreasonable. The virtual hearing crashed several times because of an overwhelming number of people from around the world trying to watch the proceedings. Djokovic is a nine-time Australian Open champion. He has 20 Grand Slam singles titles, a men’s record he shares with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

The Australian government expects 200,000 vaccinated foreign students and skilled workers will soon return without quarantining when the country further relaxes pandemic restrictions next week. From Dec. 1, students, skilled workers and travelers on working vacations will be allowed to land at Sydney and Melbourne airports without needing to seek exemptions from a travel ban, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Monday. “The return of skilled workers and students to Australia is a major milestone in our pathway back, it’s a major milestone about what Australians have been able to achieve and enable us to do,” Morrison said. The government expects 200,000 arrivals in the two categories by January, he said. Vaccinated citizens of Japan and South Korea will also be allowed in without quarantining, as well as people on humanitarian visas. But the government has yet to decide when general tourists will be allowed to return. Read: Global Covid cases near 258 million amid vaccination “I think Australians are very keen to see us take this step-by-step approach,” Morrison said. “They’ve been through a lot and they’ve sacrificed a lot to ensure that we can open safely so we can stay safely open,” he added. While vaccinated travelers will be able to arrive without quarantining in New South Wales and Victoria, Australia’s most populous states, parts of the country with lower vaccination rates still impose pandemic restrictions at state lines. After a troubled and faltering start, Australia’s vaccine rollout has gathered pace. More than 85% of the population aged 16 and older is now fully vaccinated. Australia first reopened its border to quarantine-free travelers on Nov. 1 after 20 months of some of the most draconian pandemic restrictions adopted by any democratic country. Arrivals were first restricted to Australian citizens and permanent residents. The first flights in an Australia-Singapore quarantine-free travel bubble began on Sunday. Some Australian farmers have left fruit and vegetables to rot in fields because the backpackers who provide the seasonal workforce of pickers have been absent. Read: WhatsApp pushes privacy update to comply with Irish ruling The backpackers were some of Australia’s highest yielding visitors, spending 3.2 billion Australian dollars ($2.3 billion) a year before the pandemic. They also made up a substantial part of the seasonal workforce, Business Group Australia executive director John Hart said in a statement. Universities Australia chief executive Catrina Jackson said her sector lost AU$1.8 billion ($1.3 billion) last year because foreign students were locked out. “We’ve got 130,000 students waiting to get back into this country. They’ve been so patient and they’ve been so resolute. They’ve been studying online for ... almost two years now,” Jackson told Australian Broadcasting Corp. “Some of them have just got a year left of their degree. It really is time to get them back into the country so they can finish their degree and get on with their lives,” Jackson said.

Facebook said on Tuesday it will lift its ban on Australians sharing news after a deal was struck with Australia's government on legislation that would make digital giants pay for journalism.

The Australian High Commission in Dhaka on Monday sought  proposals to support COVID-19 economic recovery in Bangladesh under the Business Partnerships Platform (BPP).

The Australian government will contribute AU$ 80 million to Gavi’s COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC), a financing instrument aimed at supporting the participation of 92 lower- and middle-income economies in the COVAX Facility, ensuring that the world’s poorest people do not miss out on safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines.

Google warned on Monday that the Australian government’s plan to make digital giants pay for news content threatens users’ free services in Australia.

The Australian government has announced changes to international student visa arrangements, including recommencing granting student visas lodged outside Australia.