Australia news live update: WA police release audio of moment they found Cleo Smith; Dutton urges France to ‘put aside hurt feelings’
Audio of My name is Cleo' moment released as WA police expect to lay charges over Cleo Smith case later today'; Peter Dutton says France would've reacted the same if told earlier about Aukus; Victoria records 1,247 new Covid cases and nine deaths; NSW records 308 and four deaths; Queensland records three local cases; Labor attacks Morrison over leaked texts - follow today's news live
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And here is the opposition leader, Anthony Albanese, joining the condemnation of Scott Morrison, speaking now to ABC News Breakfast.
Well, [the Australian and French relationship] needs some repair done, quite clearly.
It's quite extraordinary for the leader of a major nation, like France, to say the Australian prime minister lied to them. And it's quite extraordinary for them, in response, for the Australian prime minister to release a private text message that doesn't really show much.
Now ultimately, this is the decision [to exit the French submarine deal to pursue nuclear options with the US and UK] that the government took and we [Labor] backed in the national interest, that is to move to the down the path of nuclear-propelled submarines.
That's a big decision and, for the French, it was always going to be difficult to manage, but the job of the leader of the country is not to behave in this way ... it's to deal with the inevitable negative response of the change in a mature and responsible way.
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