Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Australian counterpart on the effect of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull coming into office on Australian-UK relations.

The UK and Australia continue to enjoy a close and productive partnership. At the heart of this are regular dialogues between Ministers on important policy issues. Our shared values and interests mean that dialogues continue even as counterparts change. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) most recently spoke to Malcolm Turnbull on 8 October. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) is also in regular contact with his Australian counterpart.