‘Absolute priority’: Albo’s first move back in Australia

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has pounced on an “absolute priority” after flying into Australia from overseas this afternoon.

Anthony Albanese has received an urgent briefing after touching down in Australia.

The Prime Minister met immediately with chief medical officer Paul Kelly on his return from the Pacific Islands Forum in Fiji on Friday afternoon.

They discussed the ongoing response to Covid-19 and likely increases in case numbers in the coming months, ahead of a national cabinet meeting on Monday.

Health Department secretary Brendan Murphy and Health Minister Mark Butler also attended the briefing, which was said to be Mr Albanese’s “absolute priority” on returning to Australia.

Mr Albanese said the government would continue to address issues based upon the health advice it received.

“We want to keep the economy open and the key to that is limiting the health impact on Australians,” he said.

Mr Albanese the previous night bowed to pressure from state and territory leaders to convene a snap national cabinet meeting to act on the surge of Covid-19 cases fuelled by new Omicron subvariants.

The federal government is bracing for millions of Australians to catch the virus by the end of winter.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese watched the State of Origin with other leaders.

The Albanese government is facing its first major test this week amid backlash over its decision not to extend the pandemic leave disaster payments of $750 for people who contract the virus and aren’t entitled to sick leave when they miss work.

An under pressure Mr Albanese will face calls from at least some of the premiers to reintroduce the payments at their meeting on Monday.

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet will be among them after telling reporters on Friday morning it was “unfair” for governments to restrict people’s capacity to work without providing them with financial support.

South Australia’s Labor Premier, Peter Malinauskas, is expected to join other the other state leaders in advocating for an extension of the payments on Monday.

Mr Albanese returned to Australia on Friday following the end of the Pacific Islands Forum.

Speaking to reporters in Suva, Mr Albanese wouldn’t go into detail about Beijing’s bid to win over Pacific leaders, but he said he was confident of Australia’s standing in the region.

“I’m not someone who will be leaking text messages from other leaders, nor leaking confidential discussions,” he said, referring to former prime minister Scott Morrison’s stoush with the French President.

“What is reflected though, in the communique, makes it very clear we are responsible, as the Pacific family, for security issues.

“There was an attempt to publicly, when the Chinese Foreign Minister visited the region, to get a sign-up to various elements, and it didn’t happen. The facts are there.

“Australia has been the security partner of choice since the Second World War. We remain so.”

Mr Albanese was greeted with open arms by Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare. Picture: Joe Armao / Pool / AFP

While in Suva, the Prime Minister held his first face-to-face meeting with his Solomon Islands counterpart Manasseh Sogavare.

Relations between Canberra and Honiara have been strained since Mr Sogavare inked a security agreement with China.

Australian officials were worried the deal could allow Beijing to establish a military presence in the future.

But Mr Albanese reiterated that Mr Sogavare made it very clear that would not be the case.

“His private comments certainly reflected that,” Mr Albanese said.

“I, of course, put Australia’s position as you would expect me to do.”

The new Albanese government’s climate step-up was welcomed as an opportunity to reset relations with the Pacific, he added.

“The fact that we had a meeting ended just after 3pm as opposed to argy-bargy about whether climate change was real or not until 10 o’clock at night, which is what occurred on the last occasion, was something that was reflected by all of our Pacific Island friends and leaders who were very positive about Australia’s role at the meeting,” Mr Albanese said.