Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has appointed former SA Labor Premier Jay Weatherill to the position of High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.

It comes after a string of partisan Labor Party appointments by Mr Albanese, including Stephen Jones as ambassador to the OECD and Kevin Rudd as ambassador to the US .

“He is an entirely appropriate appointment. He served as South Australia's 45th Premier for over six years,” Mr Albanese said on Monday.

“As a proud South Australian, as our future High Commissioner, Jay is well placed to take forward AUKUS in our nation's interests.”

Asked directly at the press conference if the string of partisan appointments had anything to do with the delay in the government’s handling of the “jobs for mates” report, Mr Albanese said, “No”.

The governme

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