Written question asked by Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative) on Tuesday, 14 April 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 16 April 2026. It was answered by James Frith (Labour) on Tuesday, 28 April 2026 on behalf of the Cabinet Office.

Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister: Australia

Question: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what reason the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister visited Australia in April 2026.

Answer: The Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister visited Australia in April 2026 to build critical policy and security links with state and regional authorities in Australia. This included defence visits for the AUKUS programme, and discussions with Ministers at both Federal and State level and with private sector stakeholders on support for British businesses, bolstering regional security and learnings about harnessing technology to modernise public services based on learnings from the Australian government their successes and challenges as pioneers in providing online government services. State-level meetings included understanding the context for the roll out of the New South Wales state digital ID pilot and visiting South Australia to highlight the extent of UK-Australian cooperation, focusing particularly on secure growth, including opportunities presented by the AUKUS programme.

Secondary information