Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed Australians will get a one-off public holiday in honour of the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.

The day will officially be known as the National Day of Mourning for Her Majesty The Queen and take place on September 22. The date will coincide with a national memorial that will take place in Canberra.

On September 22 there will be a public holiday for the National Day of Mourning for Her Majesty The Queen.

— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) September 10, 2022

Speaking to the ABC, Mr Albanese confirmed that he had spoken to state and territory leaders who have agreed to pass on the day off, as public holidays are legislated by state, and not the federal government.

“It will be a one-off national public holiday. That’s to allow people to pay their respects for the passing of Queen Elizabeth,” the Prime Minister told the ABC.

“I spoke to all Premiers and chief ministers yesterday and I’m writing to them formally this morning, they will have received their letters by now. They have all agreed that it’s appropriate that it be a one-off national public holiday.”

In a quirk of timing, Victorians, who already have a public holiday for the AFL Grand Final on the Friday, will be the big winners with a four day weekend.

Related story: Is the Queen’s Birthday a public holiday? The long weekend explained state-by-state

What is the symbolism behind the day?

As per protocol, the day will take place once Mr Albanese has attended the Queen’s state funeral and returns from London.

Similarly, residents in the UK have also been given a public holiday on September 19, to coincide with her state funeral.

The Prime Minister will also be joined by his partner, Jodie Haydon, the Governor-General David Hurley and his wife Linda and the acting high commissioner to the United Kingdom, and former ambassador to Germany, Lynette Wood and her partner.

The ceremony has been confirmed for September 19 and will take place at Westminster Abbey at 11am (8pm Monday AEST). While the abbey can hold around 2000 people, it’s expected the event will be attended by the royal family, heads of state and other important figures.

Once the service concludes, a procession will transport the Queen’s coffin from Westminster Abbey, to Wellington Arch in Hyde Park, and then Windsor.

A committal service will then take place at St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, where the Queen will be buried next to late husband, Prince Philip.

How will Australia commemorate the Queen’s death?

In addition to the National Day of Mourning, Australia will hold an additional memorial service on September 22. According to Mr Albanese, around 13,700 had come forward to sign the Australian online condolence book as of Sunday.

While the details of the memorial service have not been released, there will be a minute’s silence, in honour of her death.

Since the Queen’s death, a 14-day suspension of parliament has been put in place, and Mr Albanese and Governor-General David Hurley will fly to London on Thursday in order to attend the Queen’s funeral and meet King Charles III. Flags have also been lowered to half-mast as a sign of mourning.

Prince Charles to be proclaimed as Australia’s new sovereign

In lieu of the Queen’s death, her son, King Charles III has officially been installed as the new monarch of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth realms.

Although he was proclaimed King by the Accession council on Saturday, a similar ceremony occurred outside Parliament House in Sydney at 12.30pm on Sunday.

Today, the Governor will proclaim His Majesty The King in a historic ceremony held outside NSW Parliament.

The ceremony commences at 12.30 and everyone is welcome to attend. Public Transport will be free so people can travel into the city for this special occasion.

— NSW Parliament House (@nswparliament) September 10, 2022

The event took place in lieu of a special 11am meeting of the Federal Executive Council, led by Governor-General David Hurley.

Speaking to the ABC, Mr Albanese said that he hopes King Charles will continue to be “active and outspoken” on issues like climate change, something which he sees as beyond a matter of politics.

“I think that dealing with the issue of climate change shouldn’t be a political issue,” he said.

“And I think that engagement with issues is different from engagement with party political matters.”

This article originally appeared on news.com.au. It has been reproduced here with permission.