Australia and PNG sign landmark Pukpuk defence treaty

James Marape has repeated that the treaty has nothing to do with geopolitics and the relationship with China.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has stepped in and says it's about Australia's relationship with PNG.

"This is a concrete example of Australia accepting the invitation and the idea from Papua New Guinea that we step up this relationship to an alliance," Albanese says.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the treaty will lift Australia's relationship with PNG to the next level.

He says the agreement is both nation's interests, and has pledged to release the full text of the treaty.

"We will be transparent, both of our parliaments will go through the processes which are there but this has been done in a very orderly way and I think it will be very much considered," Albanese says.

The leaders have been asked what the treaty would mean for a domestic crisis on somewhere such as the island of Bougainville.

PNG Prime Minister James Marape says his government is working to demilitarise the island.

He says the local government has stepped up their policing.

Marape has also been asked whether the treaty will withstand any future change of government in PNG, given the opposition leader has been slightly critical of the pact.

The PNG prime minister says the treaty process will be transparent and there will be full disclosure to all his citizens.

"Full disclosure to all in PNG and of course Australia all in Australia, and what really entails this treaty and leaders of our country will be informed," Marape says.

PNG Prime Minister James Marape says the Pukpuk Treaty is a strategic call that solidifies Australia as a security partner of choice for PNG.

"I will never live to regret this choice I made," Marape says.

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape has thanked Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as a "brother" and "friend".

He says Albanese accepted his government's request to enter into the treaty.

Marape says the treaty is only the beginning of the next phase of the two nation's relationship.

"This Treaty was not conceived out of geopolitics or any other reason, but out of geography, history and the enduring reality of our shared neighbourhood," Marape says.

"It is about one bigger fence that secures two houses that has its own yard space. It is in this construct that we're going about in signing this Treaty," he says.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and PNG Prime Minister James Marape have just stepped up to the microphone now.

Albanese says the Papua New Guinea-Australia mutual defence treaty will commit the countries to secruing and shaping the future.

He says it's Australia's first new alliance in more than 70 years and only the third in the nation's history.

"This Treaty elevates the relationship between our two nations to the status of an alliance," Albanese has declared.

"This alliance of equals reflects our common commitment to a more secure and stable region. Above all, it is founded on the friendship between our peoples," he says.

While we wait for the press conference, here are some pictures of the signing.

(ABC News: Luke Stephenson)

(ABC News: Luke Stephenson)

(ABC News: Luke Stephenson)

Australia and Papua New Guinea have signed a landmark defence agreement that would commit the two nations to defending each other in the event of a military attack.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and PNG Prime Minister James Marape signed the Pukpuk Treaty at a ceremony at Parliament House in Canberra just a few moments ago.

The leaders were meant to sign the treaty during the prime minister's visit to PNG a few weeks ago, but it was delayed by PNG's 50th anniversary celebrations.

The treaty will now need to be ratified by parliaments in both nations for it to come into force.

We've just received word that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will be stepping up for a joint press conference with PNG Prime Minister James Marape in 15 minutes.

We expect it will be about the signing of the landmark Pukpuk defence treaty.

As always, we'll bring you that press conference here live when it drops!

James Paterson says the Liberal party's post-election review "cannot go on forever" and must have a time limit.

Former Liberal politicians Pru Goward and Nick Minchin will lead a review into the Liberal Party's 2025 federal election loss.

"We have to get back to our core business of holding this government to account for its failings and developing a compelling policy agenda," Paterson says.

Shadow Finance Minister James Paterson has just completed a doorstop in the corridors of the press gallery here in Parliament House.

Paterson says the federal government has, by omission and commission, assisted a small group of Australian women who travelled or were taken to Syria as partners of Islamic State members, return to Australia.

He says the children of the brides were born overseas, and therefore had to apply for Australian citizenship and request Australian passports from the government.

"The parliament has given the government the power to temporarily exclude someone from Australia if they've had association with a terrorist organisation," Paterson says.

"It does not appear the government has used those powers in this instance and they should explain why they haven't done so.

"So the government has assisted the return of these ISIS brides and their children and they should stop misleading the public about that," he says.

Liberal senator Maria Kovacic says no one individual is to blame for the Coalition's defeat at the last election.

Speaking to Sky News, the NSW senator says the whole Liberal team needs to reflect on the election result.

"I don't think that any individual is to blame for our election loss. There might be people that are responsible for deficiencies in their own portfolio areas," Kovacic says.

"Politics isn't singles tennis, it's a team sport and you have to work together to get a result."

Asked about how she feels about Andrew Hastie's decision to exit the Coalition frontbench, Kovacic says he's done the right thing.

She says she doesn't think there will be a leadership challenge against Opposition Leader Sussan Ley.

"I think Andrew has been pretty clear around his motivations for what he's done, if someone chooses to challenge that's a matter for them and it's not an unusual thing," he says.

The latest Newspoll shows One Nation in its strongest position since July 2017, with the poll showing the party attracting 11 per cent of the primary vote.

Former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce says the shift to One Nation is part of a "global phenomenon" and has cited shifts to the right in the UK, France, Italy, Germany and the US.

Speaking to Channel Seven, Joyce says the rightward shift is a challenge on the conservative side of politics, but says Labor won't be immune.

"The Labor party shouldn't get carried away. Any time you have a vote whether that's in your seat or at a federal level with a three in front of it, you're in a very precarious position," Joyce says.

"You can go from a substantial win to a substantial loss at the blink of an eye," he says.

Liberal senator Jame Hume has stepped up on Sky News, where she's been asked about those reports in the Sydney Morning Herald.

The paper reports that former opposition leader Peter Dutton has accused Andrew Hastie in a post-election review of fumbling key policies.

Hume says it's concerning to see a confidential submission to the review get leaked to the media.

"It was never one person or issue that was a problem at the 2025 election for the Coalition," Hume says.

"Andrew Hastie is a man of great intellect and great integrity who does his job with enormous pride," she says.

She's cited today's Newspoll showing One Nation increasing, saying the Coalition must listen to voters otherwise it risks losing votes.

The Liberal senator says the party needs to deal with "mainstream" not "fringe" issues.

Deputy Liberal leader Ted O'Brien has stepped up on Channel Nine, where he's been gently questioned about Andrew Hastie's exit.

But O'Brien has laughed it off, saying "this is democracy at work", while admitting it's a bit messy.

"It's a bit messy, I get that, but this is the way you get good policy and we're not shy of going into bat and debating policy and that's really what you're seeing here," he says while having a chuckle.

Asked how long he thinks Sussan Ley will remain as opposition leader, O'Brien says he thinks Ley will become the next prime minister.

He says Andrew Hastie has made a decision that he can make a "bigger and better" contribution to the Liberal Party from the backbench.

But he says there was no discussion about disagreements over immigration policy upon his resignation, as Hastie claimed last Friday.

"I certainly know he's had conversations with Sussan, my understanding is there was no discussion about the immigration portfolio debate at all," he says.

A small group of Australian women who travelled or were taken to Syria as partners of Islamic State members, and their children, have managed to return to Australia.

James Paterson says Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke must address the public with basic facts about what has happened.

"How will they be monitored? Where will they live? What involvement did the government have in bringing them home? None of these have been answered," Paterson says.

Asked if these citizens have a right to return, Paterson says they do, but the government has the power to temporarily exclude the return of Australian citizens if they've been associated with terrorism.

"If the government hasn't used those powers, then they should explain why not," he says.

James Paterson has stepped in as interim shadow home affairs minister following Andrew Hastie's exit from the Coalition frontbench.

Speaking to ABC Radio National Breakfast, Paterson says immigration is "unquestionably" too high at the moment, and is producing concerns among Australians.

Asked if he's prepared to put a number on what Australia's migrant intake should be, Paterson says he won't today.

"We've got to go through a proper policy process, and unilaterally announcing a number as an acting shadow minister wouldn't be conducive to that," Paterson says.

Is Opposition Leader Sussan Ley struggling to keep her party united? Shadow Finance Minister James Paterson says anyone leading the Liberal party at this stage has a difficult task ahead.

"We have just come off with the worst loss in 80 years of the history of the Liberal Party, and we're going through a period of introspection and debate, and part of that has to be public," Paterson says.

"Whether it was Susan Ley or anyone else, it was going to be a difficult time," he says.

Paterson says he believes Ley has put the appropriate processes in place to deliver policies ahead of the next federal election.

Asked if he thinks its inevitable Ley will face a leadership challenge this term, Patersons says he doesn't think so and that she enjoys the support of the party room.

Former Liberal opposition leader Peter Dutton has reportedly made a highly critical submission to the Liberal election campaign review about Andrew Hastie.

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Dutton accused Hastie of going "on strike" and fumbling key policies.

James Paterson has told ABC Radio National Breakfast the campaign review hasn't been completed or released, and appears to be based off third-party sources.

Nevertheless, the shadow finance minister says he doesn't agree with the characterisation of Hastie's contribution.

"He was a key voice in our national security and defence team, which was one of the strongest areas that we put forward during the last term and I don't agree that he was in any way responsible for our election loss," Paterson says.

And Paterson has issued a warning to current Liberal party members and their staff, saying they should stop "playing games" with the campaign review process for "internal positioning or advancement".

Asked if he knows who leaked the submission from Dutton, Paterson says he has "no idea".

Shadow Finance Minister James Paterson says Andrew Hastie has done the right and honourable thing and resigned from the Coalition frontbench.

The conservative WA MP quit Opposition Leader Sussan Ley's shadow ministry on Friday over a disagreement on immigration policy.

His resignation happened days after Ley sent shadow cabinet ministers "charter letters" laying out her expectations of frontbenchers.

Speaking to ABC Radio National Breakfast, Paterson, a fellow conservative, says it was responsible for him to step down from the frontbench.

"I haven't seen the charter letter that Andrew Hastie received, and I don't know the details of the arrangements that she proposed and so I'm not in a position to adjudicate that or commentate on that," Paterson says.

"But I think Andrew's been upfront and honest about his motivations. This isn't about the leadership. This is about his fundamental convictions on issues of policy," he says.