Ousted Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull attended a dinner last night marking just over twenty years since Australians voted to retain our Constitutional Monarchy.
Along with Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese, and Greens Leader Richard di Natale, laid out their reasons for why Australia should become a republic.
Notwithstanding Albanese’s facile reference to the Duke of York’s disastrous interview, the reasons cited to media include the fact that the Queen doesn’t live here, that our Constitution bars those with more than one national allegiance from serving in the Federal Parliament, and “it’s just inappropriate in 2019… “
I kid you not, Albanese said that to the gaggle of media present after the dinner. It sounds like the Opposition Leader is saying “We should move with the times; it’s the current year!”
If I hadn’t heard it myself, I wouldn’t believe that the Opposition Leader could be so puerile in his argumentation, but not only is his argumentation puerile, it is also disingenuous.
Speaking of disingenuous, Turnbull – a trained lawyer – tried to pull out the canard that Queen Elizabeth and her family feel more loyalty to the United Kingdom than to Australia.
I’ve never liked Turnbull, but even someone who does not read Law would realise that his narcissistic claptrap is one of the reasons why people voted down the Republic in 1999. We the People do not want an egotistical globalist as our Head of State.
Her Majesty may live in her Realm of the United Kingdom, but as Turnbull well knows, the Commonwealth of Australia is a sovereign nation in Personal Union with the United Kingdom, and all of Her Majesty’s other Realms.
Should Australia become a Republic?
Needless to say, my answer is no. I’m a committed Constitutionalist, and I can’t think of a better system than the one we have. No, it’s not perfect, but it’s better than the rest.
Even with Prince Andrew’s egregious indiscretions tarnishing the Royal Family, that does not diminish the stability of our current constitutional arrangements.
