As we celebrate Australia Day with our friends and families - over barbeques, picnic tables and beach towels - I know that many of you share my concerns about the impact of the global financial crisis on our families.
This year will not be an easy one, and to be frank, we face some very big challenges.
But I am confident that, if we all pull together, we can come through this together - and come out even stronger and emerge from this crisis even more resilient than before.
Australia is better placed then almost every other nation to deal with the global financial crisis, but it's going to be tough.
Our history as a nation is one of resilience - to confront obstacles and see a way through, to emerge stronger and more determined.
From the struggle of Indigenous Australians for recognition and respect;
From the courage of our diggers in Gallipoli,
on the Western Front, at Kokoda,
in Timor Leste and
in Afghanistan;
From the determination of miners on the goldfields, of women for the right to vote and of workers for a fair go at work.
This is not an ordinary nation... This is an extraordinary nation.
Resilient, courageous, and purposeful, without sacrificing compassion.
In 2009 we will be calling on all those great Australian qualities because we are all in this together.
The Government stands ready to do whatever is necessary to support the stability of our financial institutions at a time when others around the world are under threat; to support the economy during a global economic recession; and to create new jobs through government investment as other jobs in the private sector come under pressure
Our shared history as Australians shows that together, we can meet the challenges the world might throw at us in 2009.
I wish you a very happy Australia Day.
You can view the video of the Prime Minister's Australia Day message in the media hub.