“His Majesty, as a constitutional monarch, acts on the advice of his ministers; and the Australian public must decide whether Australia will become a republic,” the king’s assistant personal secretary, Nathan Ross, allegedly told the Australian republicans. The spokesperson of the Buckingham Palace gave a similar statement to the media.
ARM presents itself as “the supreme body striving for the Australian people for an Australian republic with an Australian as the head of state”, but the republican sentiment on the continent is also spread by some leading political figures. The Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in the past that Australia should have an Australian at the head of the state, but he has recently indicated that another referendum is not a priority for him, The Guardian reports.
Charles’ trip to Australia will be his first major trip since being diagnosed with cancer and his first ever visit to the country since his coronation.
The leader of the British anti-monarchist campaign Republic Graham Smith is also now in Australia. “For the last two weeks I have been talking with friends, activists and others. Most people hardly know about the king’s visit and they don’t care. I am here to promote the British campaign and ask how Karel can represent us and why he is making this short visit at the huge expense of the Australian and British taxpayers,” said Smith.
“I am also here to tell Australians that this is not an institution that deserves respect or reverence, and that they should not believe for a moment that Great Britain is a nation of monarchists. I hope that this visit will help influence the debate in both countries and highlight the insignificance of the monarchy,” he added.
